Hit the Ground Running
by Macx
Summary: In a world where some people are gifted with the ability to shift shape, Chris Larabee is the leader of a rather rag-tag bunch of lawmen, his pack. Their job is to protect Four Corners Territory. And it's his job as the alpha to protect the pack. When Ezra is attacked by one of their, the truth about who he really is might just get him killed. Or worse. AU, Slash
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: had a long, long writer's block. Seems it wasn't just lack of fandom input, but actually a vitamin deficiency. So writer's block can be a medical condition? Go figure. Now I'm finally back in the mood and this happened. Of all the fandoms to pop back up, it's Mag7. And it's an AU, of course. A bit like Old West, a bit something more modern, and a lot of something completely else of my own creation. Hope you enjoy the story. I'm currently enjoying the writer's rush (haven't stopped writing in three days).

Sometimes it just didn't pay to get up. Be it in the morning or the late afternoon, or even at night.

No, it didn't pay off.

Trouble would find him on those days.

Like today.

Ezra Standish knew it had been a big mistake the day he had let a Section Judge coerce him into working as a Territory regulator. Well, Travis had more or less threatened to throw him into jail to rot if he didn't take up this job. A paid job. A truly official job, but with a whole tangle of strings attached. He had dangled a pardon in front of his nose, promised him a clean slate. A new start. Away from everything that had happened to him and because of him in the past.

People who came out here, into the untamed wild of a Territory, who turned their back on modern civilization with all its perks and technological amenities, fell into several categories.

There were the fortune hunters, the entrepreneurs, those who thought they could undermine or circumvent the Protection Act and make money off the land.

Ezra had to confess he had fallen into that category when he had arrived so long ago. Well, he hadn't been interested in the wealth he had to dig up from the ground or tear off the mountains himself. He had been looking into relieving some gents from their hard earned money another way. A game here, a con there, nothing to outrageous to get him on anyone's radar.

Then there were those lonely souls who were overwhelmed in the cities, who preferred a simpler lifestyle, maybe even alone in the middle of nowhere with just the occasional human contact.

Flocks of scientists sometimes overran the towns dotting a Territory, convinced they had found a way to make technology work as it was supposed to out here, even though it was a hard fact that it wouldn't. The Territories were resistant in a way and no one knew why for sure. Everyone had a different theory.

And then there was the criminal element running from the law.

Out here, it was easy to hide, to go under cover and lay low. It was where the regulators came in, the men and women working as law enforcement, as a police force, as search and rescue, as the protectors. It was a hard, harsh and dangerous job.

Ezra had accepted in the end. Maybe because he had been hit in the head once too often. Maybe because of the enigmatic, powerful presence no three feet behind him at the time, watching the proceedings and judging his new team.

Yes, maybe because of this very man, Chris Larabee, and Ezra's promise to him.

It had been an even worse mistake not to make a run for it the moment the Judge had left, taking his chances in becoming a fugitive with a sizeable bounty on his head. Ezra was used to hiding who he was, becoming someone else and blending in wherever he went.

But he hadn't run. He hadn't turned tail and left Chris Larabee and his rag-tag band of men. He had stuck around despite his continued misgivings about his own situation. He had stuck around and fought battles, had warded off robberies and kidnappings, had gone into towns undercover to spy and gather intel. He had done everything their leader had asked of him.

He had become pack.

He had stayed longer than the year that had been his sentence. He had his pardon, he had a clean slate, he was free, but he hadn't left. Four Corners was suddenly no longer just one of the many towns to pass through and then forget about. It had become more.

Now, after two years, it was too late to think about turning away and leaving. He was in too deep, entangled with the Larabee pack, part of them in so many ways, and he had let down his guard too often. There were relationships now. He had formed ties of friendship with them all, some stronger, some more personal, than others.

And he had connected on a very different, very much personal level to the man in charge.

A man he trusted with his very life, but not his very core, he reminded himself grimly. Because some secrets Ezra still kept. Secrets that might just get him killed at the hands of the pack he had come to rely on in so many ways, his mother would be ashamed of him.

Four Corners Territory was large for only seven peacekeepers to handle, but Chris hadn't had a problem so far. The main town was under his protection and everyone knew it. That they had a pack of shifters as the Territory's regulators had spread quickly and the unsavory elements had become wary. Larabee's reputation was legendary after just two years now, some of it almost like myth and magic, and Ezra had laughed at some of the more outrageous rumors.

Chris was secretly amused, but he never did anything to stop the grapevine.

It served a purpose.

It served them.

Shifters weren't an aberration or a mutation of the human form. They were just a variation like skin or hair color. They were just… there. A fluke of nature, accepted, end of story. Not everyone who had the ability came out bragging. Not everyone shifted on a daily basis. Some went through their whole lives with only immediate family and select few friends knowing about them.

Throughout history, the shifters came and went in society, just like any group or part of the population. There were those that sought solitude; others that mingled with humans.

Each shifter had only one other form and it wasn't predetermined by nationality, gender or preference. While the form mimicked an animal and they had those instincts, some shifters displayed a greater control over their physical forms than others.

Four Corners was special in many ways, but to have the Seven was a matter of pride and dark warnings not to cross Larabee.

Seven men, all of different origin, with different backgrounds and stories, but they had formed a pack and become family.

Which might be the only explanation Ezra could come up with for why he had gone after Josiah when the man had stormed out of the local watering hole, a full bottle clutched in his hand, and made off.

Josiah and liquor were a dangerous mix.

A very dangerous one.

Now even more so because Inez had told Ezra that it hadn't been Josiah's first bottle. Not even his second. The man had gone through two and a half very potent liquors before disappearing with his bottle for the road.

Oh fun.

All of Ezra's instincts had screamed at him to leave the man alone, but Chris was still handling matters at the Peterson Spread just outside town together with Vin. Buck and JD had patrols, and Nathan was treating a few of the townsfolk who needed medical assistance.

 _Up to me_ , he thought with resignation.

Handle a drunk Josiah before he did any damage. The man was usually a very laid-back person, who had had a violent past he wanted to put behind. He found peace in rebuilding an ancient chapel a little outside town, offering an open ear to whoever wanted to talk, and giving sage advice. Sometimes unwanted advice, in Ezra's case, but always sound one.

Ezra knew a little of Sanchez's past, that he had been a gun for hire, had killed, had had temper problems, had had family problems. An abusive family, with a sister who had mental deficiencies, and with a father who had ended up dead one day. Judge Travis had given Chris Josiah's known file and Larabee had still been unimpressed, had told the Judge that Josiah was pack and would be under his command.

A massive bear shifter in a wolf pack. Well, Ezra mused with grim humor, why not? Aside from Chris, Buck and JD, no one was a wolf anyway. They were most unlikely alliance in the history of Territory regulators.

And this feeling of alliance, of friendship, of belonging to the pack might be the reason why he had gone after the other man.

He should have left it to someone else. He should have left Josiah to himself, to handle his demons.

But no… here he was…

Good lord, he thought to himself. What had he turned into?

A good Samaritan?

Whatever it was, he might just be in over his head.

"Leave me alone!" Josiah roared, face twisted in a pain only he could feel, only he remembered from somewhere deep in his past.

A pain triggered by whatever had happened in the last hours.

Ezra couldn't care less, because in that very moment he knew he was in deep, deep trouble. He wasn't just in over his head, he was on this sinking ship without a lifeboat. He had jumped off a cliff without a parachute. He had made the biggest blunder in his illustrious career.

Never get caught with your back against the wall, his mother had always told him. Know your opponent, know the territory, know how far to go and when to leave well enough alone to count your losses. Leave. Run. Play a new card from a tricked deck another day.

Well, he had gone into this without following the sacred words. He hadn't thought for a moment; he had simply acted.

Oh, his mother would lay into him, tear him a new one. If he was lucky she would cut all ties.

The blur of the shift caught him by surprise and he gave an exclamation of denial as the massive bear reared up before him. Josiah was huge, a lot larger than Nathan could ever hope to be, with shaggy, dark brown fur and a maw full of dagger-like teeth.

Ezra's mind blanked as he saw the bear stand on his hind legs, towering over the hapless man. The dark eyes were filled with anger, close to rage, and while a part of Ezra knew it wasn't a rage directed at him, another couldn't care less.

Whatever the alcohol had done to Josiah, it had erased all rational thought.

A massive paw swiped for him and he jumped back, stumbling over an exposed root. The second swipe came in and he wasn't fast enough.

Sharp claws slashed at his clothes and found vulnerable skin and flesh.

There was a hot pain racing over his nerve endings and Ezra heard himself gasp, then instinct took over and he ran. Shifted and ran.

The bear on his tail.

And he was fast. Crashing through the forest with no regard for whatever vegetation was in his way, Josiah chased after the slender shadow that tried to whisk through the undergrowth, lose the enraged predator.

Ezra felt the pain with each step, knew he was bleeding massively, but he couldn't give in. He had to get out of Josiah's reach. There was no reasoning with the intoxicated man, he knew that only too well. Alcohol was Josiah's vice, his downfall, his devil and his salvation in so many ways. Whatever had pushed him toward a bottle now, Ezra couldn't care less.

He just had to get away from the man and wait it out, let the poison run through the other shifter's system. With any luck Sanchez wouldn't remember a thing, wake up with a hangover and just drown his sorrows and his headache in strong coffee.

Ezra stopped suddenly, aware he had backed himself into another corner, and he felt panic starting to rise. Before him was nothing. Just… nothing. A steep, steep canyon wall falling into nothingness, the bottom barely visible, and all over the horizon was nothing but darkness.

The storm front.

There had been warnings all day yesterday, with bleaker and more dangerous predictions every hour, and just this morning the warning had been upgraded to severe.

Well, shit, he thought briefly.

And then the bear was there, mad fury reflecting in the dark eyes. Ezra was shaking, his body weakened because of his injury, the blood loss, and he knew there was little he could do.

Except…

He started to run along the edge, using boulders to jump longer stretches, Josiah still following.

He just needed this running start.

He just needed a little time…

Concentrating, aware this would hurt, would weaken him further, would reveal his nature to everyone, he made a choice.

Well, the revelation might just go unnoticed since his only witness was a drunk, raging bear.

Wings burst out of his back, a fox's back. A fox that normally didn't come with wings.

He jumped.

There was a furious roar behind him.

Then he fell.

The storm was still not upon him, but the winds in the canyon were definitely not in his favor. His small body was thrown around and he hit the canyon wall with one wing, felt the sharp pain, then he angled it automatically and tried to find a place to land.

Or crash.

Probably crash.

Most definitely crash.

The sharp pain in his side flared with a vengeance and he had more and more trouble staying focused. With the wind and his declining strength, each wing flap was sapping the strength from him.

Ezra yelped as he involuntarily banked to the left as he wing gave out briefly. He managed to right himself, but it was too late to avoid the tree.

The fox crashed into the pine with so much momentum it was a small miracle he didn't break either wing. He simply plummeted to the ground in a heap of feathers and fur, screaming in pain as he landed on his bad side.

Panting, vision darkening, Ezra just lay there, dazed and confused. In pain. A lot of pain.

He was alone.

No one knew he was here.

No one…

Dear lord, he was going to die.

tbc...


	2. Chapter 2

The storm warnings had come in all day yesterday and Chris Larabee had taken them very seriously. While the weather was mostly mild throughout summer, autumn brought strong winds that easily escalated into storms. Not every year, but sometimes those storms hit a category four or five where homes were lost, power went down and whole landscapes were turned upside down.

Vin Tanner was usually one of the first to get a feeling of such a strong shift in what was a normal weather front. Chris listened to his second-in-command. He knew the man's abilities went deeper than the laid-back tracker normally liked to show. He didn't talk much about what he sensed, but when he did, Larabee knew that he had to listen.

Vin was better than any weather forecast from the cities. Those were highly unreliable out here anyway. The Territory didn't work by city expectations or standards. Out here, technology refused to cooperate. A visiting scientist had once tried to explain it to the pack leader, talking about interference and energy lines, energy pockets and leys. Ley lines were a big topic in these parts and also one the science world was fascinated, as well as stumped and baffled by. They existed, were part of the Territory, and the indigenous people were very much in tune with that energy running everywhere.

That was about all that was known, and all kinds of gear broke or malfunctioned when it came into contact with the natural energy of a Territory.

Vin might not have been born a native, but he had grown up here and his so-called 'feelings' were never wrong.

Like yesterday when Vin had announced that this was going to be bad.

Word had been sent out to the outlying homesteads, to farms and ranches, to whoever had a radio to listen to. The Protection Act allowed radios within the Four Corners Territory, though towers were sparse and had to be specially maintained. People who moved out here were aware of the strict limitations as compared to the cities, where everything was at everyone's disposal whenever they needed it.

Out here, it was the land that shaped the people, not the other way around. Some things worked, others were utterly useless. It was a matter of cooperating with nature, not using and abusing it.

And within each Territory, regulators took care of those entrusted to them. Four Corners had the Larabee pack. And the pack had Vin.

Preparations had been made and Chris watched the dark sky, gusts of wind blowing the dark blond hair around his head until he jammed his hat on.

"This'll be even worse by tomorrow," Vin muttered, clear blue eyes tracking the clouds.

JD hurried over to them and nodded at Chris that the town was taken care of. The young sheriff was doing a fine job and had learned a lot in the past two years. There had been doubt among the town's people that a kid raised in the city, with barely any instincts to speak of, could handle this job, but JD had. He was learning every day, was listening to instinct, had Buck and the others in the pack to teach him, and he was a respected sheriff.

"Anyone seen Josiah?" Nathan asked as he joined them, his dark face creased with worry.

"Last I heard he walked out of Inez's with a bottle," JD spoke up.

Chris' brows lowered. Josiah and a bottle were not a good sign. Hard liquor did something to the man. It hit him harder than others, his metabolism apparently not able to work with large volumes of alcohol, and he either became a mean drunk, holed up in his place, or disappeared in the wild until he was sober again. They all had their demons, they all needed the space sometimes, because they all had had a reason to come out here.

Chris was no exception.

"He's not in his room, nor in his chapel," Nathan added.

"Damn," Larabee cursed under his breath.

With the weather coming in, being out alone was highly unadvisable. What little technology worked in the Territory would be totally on the frizz. Right now they still had the radios, but the moment the storm was upon them, even that would be a useless.

"Vin, with me. We'll see where he went off to. The two of you stay in town. Continue preparations. When Buck comes back from his rounds, call the homesteads again before we have black-outs, see if they need help."

The two men nodded and Vin wordlessly joined the pack alpha.

X X X

They found an absolutely wasted Josiah after tracking him through the forest. He lay in a clearing, flattened bushes around him, two trees split apart by brute force. The most worrying part was the blood Chris smelled on the still shifted bear, who was unconscious and unresponsive.

Blood he knew, he realized.

Ezra's blood.

Ezra!

A snarl rose inside him as his mind came to only one conclusion and he grabbed one ear of the colossal bear, tugging hard.

"Sanchez!" he roared.

There was no reply. Whatever pain reflex the tug had sent, Josiah's brain didn't even let him twitch.

"Fuck!"

Ezra's blood! On Josiah's claws! Ezra was injured and the perpetrator was completely out of it.

The anger was a black, vicious thing. It curled in his stomach, but Chris pushed it back. He needed a clear head. Anger never helped and while he wanted nothing more than to tear into Josiah until he woke and told him where Ezra was, the alpha in him took a step back, assessed the situation and overrode the more primal instinct.

Above them, the sky was a leaden gray, the wind stronger than before, and in the distance he heard thunder roll. It would be one of those storms, Chris knew. They would be picking up the pieces for days when it was through.

Right now he needed to find his missing pack member. He needed to find Ezra. The town was in good hands. The rest of the pack was taking care of it.

Vin exchanged a look with his alpha, then nodded.

"I can backtrack," Tanner said calmly as he removed his clothes and shifted.

Chris pulled in a deep breath, feeling something primal rise inside of him that needed to be let out, but now was not the time. He quickly undressed and shifted himself, then they were off.

X X X

Clouds were churning across the sky and the wind had picked up. Vin's sure-footed gait never faltered once as he led the dark, looming shape of his alpha through the forest. Chris followed him as easily as if he was a cat himself, never once hesitating as the mountain lion took the fastest way toward their goal. He also never questioned whether the tracker knew where he was going.

Vin simply knew.

He knew Four Corners, the Territory that was his home, and he knew nature would guide him to where they needed to be. Sometimes it was too spiritual for Chris, but he didn't doubt the connection between Tanner and this land. Vin had been a protector long before becoming a regulator, a guardian of the place the Larabee pack had chosen as its home base. Like the indigenous people of the land he felt the world around him, was aware of it in a different way.

There had been long night talks between them two men, the alpha and the tracker. Vin never spoke much about his family, his background, but when he did, Chris listened. Tanner knew more about the actual land than many scientists, but he never volunteered information to them when they once again set out on their treks. He only nodded his agreement to guide them when asked directly.

"The land accepts you or it denies you," Vin had once said. "The pack is accepted. You are accepted as a strong alpha, and with you, everyone around you."

Larabee had a hard time wrapping his head around the fact that the earth he walked on, the rocks and plants that made up his Territory, seemed to be sentient in Tanner's mind. At least to a degree.

"It's energy, Chris," had been the amused reply. "We all are energy. Energy recognizes energy. Good and bad, and all between. It's what clashes with technology. There are such energy nodes everywhere, and in some places they are strong, like deep wells of pure power. In others they blend into the background, shielded or dormant."

It was an as good explanation as any, even if still too spiritual. Josiah seemed to understand it better, but he was hardly more equipped to explain it in even simpler terms to their alpha.

So they went deeper into the canyon, taking narrow paths alongside dangerous drops. The weather was getting increasingly bad, the winds faster and stronger down here as they were condensed and sped up by the shape of the canyon itself. The trees were creaking, bending in the wind, and dust rose in thick plumes. Now and then a drop of rain hit his face. The sky had by now taken on an eerie, yellowish hue within the gray.

When Vin finally stopped after they had reached the bottom, his sudden tension had Chris tense in turn.

"Damn," Tanner murmured. "Shit, Ezra!"

Before them lay a fox, covered in blood, dirt and debris, clearly unconscious and very clearly their missing pack member. There was no doubt about it in their minds.

And also not just a fox. Not only because the color was completely off from what Chris knew Ezra usually looked like. He was… he had…

"There's an emergency shelter near-by," Vin said, ears flicking back and forth. "We get him there. You can take care of Ezra, I'll get help."

Chris nodded and shifted to human form, ignoring the cold. Temperatures had dropped slowly in the past hours, heralding the storm front, and soon it would be dangerous to be out here unprotected. But wolves were resilient. Tough. Hard to impress and even harder to take down, so a little cold didn't bother him.

Naked as the day he had been born, Chris knelt on the ground next to the unconscious, unresponsive fox, carefully running exploring, sure fingers along the wings. He found no breaks, but he discovered deep bruises, vicious abrasion and torn out feathers that had bled a lot. The rest of the feathers were a total mess.

But it was Ezra.

He knew it deep inside, recognized pack, and his scent was unique.

Careful fingers parted the blood-clumped fur and he looked at the deep, ugly slashes that had bled heavily.

"Fuck," he whispered and exchanged a look with Vin, who was watching silently, as he saw the depths of wounds on Ezra's side.

Josiah had caught him good, probably in human shape or he would have been eviscerated in such a small form.

"There's a shelter not far from here," Vin only said.

They would have supplies there, but first they had to secure the winged fox. Chris was glad Ezra was unconscious as he wrapped him securely, then shifted and picked up the precious cargo. While shifters rarely ever carried supplies, this time they had at least brought a backpack with them he could carry between his teeth.

Good thinking, he mused as he loped after Vin.

tbc...


	3. Chapter 3

That a so-called Emergency Rescue Shelter Station had been close by Ezra's crash site had been pure dumb luck, especially since the storm was almost upon them. Getting the limp, unresponsive fox into it was almost easy compared to finding him. Chris inspected the ERSS, discovered it neatly stocked with whatever people in emergency situations might need for a night or two, and nodded to himself. Shelters like this one were spread all over a Territory. They were maintained by the Territory's regulators in cooperation with the hunters and trappers that frequented the areas. It was mostly Vin who checked in on the shelters on a regular basis and he knew their location by heart, could find them blindfolded in a hail storm, and he was meticulous when it came to keeping them functional and well-stocked.

They had enough food, had warmth and electricity from a generator, and even if it was small, the space was enough for two people to share. There was even a radio, which was absolutely useless at the moment. The interference was too strong.

JD might have been able to make it work to a degree. Chris had no idea how the younger wolf did it, but he could cobble together tech that worked out here that not even scientists, who should be more knowledgeable with their own gear, could. He simply had a knack, which was only met by Ezra's own talent in that regard.

Letting those two loose on their gear was… always interesting. The sheriff station had some pretty unconventional tech stuff, absolutely non-regulation, but Chris easily overlooked it.

It worked.

That was all he needed to know.

That Ezra was just as tech savy had been a surprise and hadn't come out till the day he had watched the con man deftly put together a comm device with spare parts and whatnot, connected it to a survey probe, of all things, and had managed to get a signal out for help.

Chris knew he would never stop being surprised at the well of talent of this man.

Vin slinked in, eyes roaming over the interior, then met those of his leader.

"I'll make my way back," he announced. "Let the others know."

"Be careful," Chris only said. He knew it was futile to convince the tracker to wait out the storm with him and Ezra.

Vin knew Four Corners Territory like the back of his hand, and nature held no terror for him. Even in a category five storm like this one was turning out to be soon.

"Take care of him."

He would.

The black wolf shifted and looked at the small, gray fox, the wings hanging limply over the flanks, and he shook his head.

Ezra Standish.

Crossbreed.

Ornery son-of-a-bitch was a crossbreed! No wonder he was such a hard to pin character, so elusive, never closer than he had to be within the team, but still part of them in an integral way. Hiding and then again, not. There had been no deception in their personal relationship, in the way Ezra had fit into his life, into his very soul.

"Chris," Vin rumbled.

He met the large cat's eyes. "He's Ezra," he told his second-in-command firmly. "Always has been, always will be. Changes nothing."

It was what he had said before, in so many words, and it was still the truth.

"He hid for a reason, cowboy."

"I know."

Did he? Did he really know why Ezra had kept this from them?

Yes, he thought slowly. He did. He couldn't understand it, but he did know. Weird as it sounded.

Lore about crossbreeds could be found everywhere. Most of it outrageous, outlandish, downright laughable and farfetched. But it was a reason for them to hide and run whenever discovery was probable. It was the main reason why crossbreeds didn't reveal their true nature.

Vin watched him knowingly.

Had his friend been aware of Ezra's secret? Probably not, but he had suspected it.

"Be careful," the tracker said.

He almost laughed. Just almost. "Go," Larabee ordered. "Before the storm catches you. Let the others know and tell them it's an order: no one is to come out here before this is over. You'll have your hands full with looters and whatever crazy idiot is trying to get himself killed in this."

Vin nodded, then he was gone. Chris secured the outer and the inner doors with their respective latches, then checked every opening. The ERSS was solidly built into the mountain, almost right into a cave, and it was heavily protected against storm, flood and even mountain slides. The category five wouldn't bring down the mountain, but it would batter against the stone and steel.

Already he could hear the howls catching in the narrow canyon, the gusts of wind beating against the rocky walls, battering the trees, and he caught the the distant rumbles.

Ezra was oblivious to it all.

Chris regarded the fox. He had a light gray, almost dusty coat, darker than mere white, lighter than any gray Chris had ever seen. The back of his ears was a darker gray, the only color change in the whole coat. The coloring was almost exotic and despite the fact that he was covered in blood and grime, beautiful. He marveled at the rather large, strong wings, equally shaded in light gray. Larabee knelt down to run a careful caress over the closest. It was mostly undamaged, with just a few overstressed muscles, but that couldn't be said about the other. There were broken and torn out feather, blood clinging to the remaining ones, to the skin. There was no break, but it was heavily abraded and he might just have twisted it enough to hurt for a while.

Since Ezra had apparently crashed into a tree and fallen to the ground, it was a miracle he hadn't done a lot more damage. Exploring each wing briefly, Chris surmised that they were a lot stronger than they looked, muscled and capable of more than mere glides. These were wings that had been used in the past, exercised.

The more problematic injuries were the deep incisions in Ezra's side. Four, to be precise. From sharp, knife-like claws. They hadn't hit bone, but they had sliced through muscles and tendons.

Chris felt a momentary spike of anger, then squelched it. There would be a time in the near future to confront Josiah, to take this the official way if Ezra decided to press charges – which Larabee highly doubted. Right now he would have to treat the serious injury and keep his companion warm and safe.

Efficiently cleaning out the blood and debris elicited small whimpers, but the crossbreed never woke. He had to cut the soft fur, now clumped with blood, away from the wound and used a few deft stitches to hold the torn skin together. Chris bandaged it all, then gathered the small form and deposited him on the only bed. Shifting, the wolf curled around the fox, nosing a little against the limp head, then licked gently over one dark ear.

Chris huffed softly to himself as he caught up to his own actions.

Another gust rattled against the shelter station and he settled in for a long night.

X X X X

Ezra made soft, whimpering noises in his uneasy sleep and Chris curled more around the smaller form, the light gray of Ezra's coat contrasting the midnight black of Chris' own coloring. He had always been a contrast to the pack leader, be it in his human form or his shifted one. They had been so different from the start and still there was something that connected both men. Chris had felt it form, slowly, over the time they had banded together to help the mountain village against the raiders to the moment Travis had asked them to stay on as this Territory's official regulators.

Well, in Ezra's case there had been a little bit of bullying and a promised pardon involved, but Standish could still have said no and taken his chances.

He hadn't.

Larabee had done it simply because… there had been nothing else for him but the pain and the bottom of a bottle that would kill him one day. He was scarred and damaged and broken in places. There were shields around his soul, keeping him safe, isolated, away from the pain of his loss from so many years ago. Sarah and Adam's deaths had shattered something inside him. His dreams had been destroyed, his life had ended.

The new pack had mended him as much as he had given them their own stabilities. The pack supported each other unconsciously, learned about the individual members, and they became stronger.

Ezra… Ezra had stood out. In so many good and bad, annoying and also reassuring ways. He was what they needed, what the situation required, but in the beginning he always moved at the fringe of the group. The cocky, self-assured man was just a façade. Underneath were layers and layers that Larabee had tried to untangle.

There was compassion. There was empathy. There was a conscience. There was also an entrepreneurial spirit that sometimes had him stray from the straight and narrow path, but never too far. He tested the waters, especially with Chris, and Chris… Chris loved it.

Ezra was a riddle, but sometimes, for brief moments, he was so clear to read, the wolf had no problem seeing him as he was.

And what Ezra was… it was attractive. Not just the handsome outside, but also that strength underneath the deceptive exterior.

So Chris kept looking for more. He kept reading the file Travis had given him on the other man, as if he would be able to glean even more from the lines than before. With each revelation, with each time they worked together and he discovered something new and surprising about the other shifter, Chris knew he was getting closer and closer. Too close.

Until he was too entangled.

And in the year to follow the formation of the Territory's new regulators, the connection between the two men had strengthened through the pack until there had been no denying it anymore.

Chris Larabee had found something more in Ezra Standish, the wily red fox.

Red.

Ezra's usual color when he shifted. The few times he actually did, Chris reminded himself. Where the wolves freely ran whenever they could, usually joined by Vin, sometimes by the two bears, Ezra chose not to be his shifter self most of the time.

"Most uncivilized," he had always remarked.

As for the fox shape, he had given Chris a trademark smirk when he had shifted for the very first time, the glossy coat gleaming in the sun.

"Did you expect anything else?"

No, actually he hadn't. The red fox suited the gambler, thief and con man. It suited the undercover operative of the Larabee pack, the man of a dozen different faces and even more talents. Ezra P. Standish was a man of incredible talent, who always had an ace up his sleeve, who went in and out of tight places, dangerous or near-impossible situations, and Chris had never questioned it.

Maybe he should have.

Maybe he should have questioned his easy acceptance that this was… Ezra. He had chalked it up to the man's colorful past, his upbringing and so-called training. He was whatever they needed him to be on the job, infiltrating gangs, winning people's trust easily, stringing a mark along…

And he had become something different to Chris. Larabee should have seen past that, too. How it had been more than just stress relief. How it was far from casual for him. How he, the man who had been rumored to most likely court Mary Travis, had been far from interested in the young widow with her son. She was nice on the eye, but he had never fancied something else.

Yeah, the pull to Ezra should have been a first clue.

Now here they were, the gray fox with a set of wings, and the pack leader. A crossbreed and a purebred.

Another pained whimper, followed by weak twitches had Chris focus on his patient again. "Easy, Ezra. I've got you," he said, voice a dark, rough rumble.

For a moment the green eyes opened, reflecting the fever racing through him, bright and filled with confusion. Such a contrast in the lightly colored face, still so familiar. The fever was a sure-fire sign that the shifter was fighting the injury, his metabolism kicked up in high gear. It was also reassuring Larabee that nature was running its course, that Ezra would be fine.

"I've gotcha, Ez," Chris repeated soothingly.

The glazed eyes slid shut and he whined, wings quivering.

"Why did you never tell me?" he said softly, tugging at one ear with gentle teeth like a reprimand. Then he licked over the velvety surface. "You keep so many secrets. I don't mind. I never did, really. I knew what I was getting into with you. Right from the start. The Judge warned me, but I knew. Maybe it was instinct. Wolves are pretty good at that, but still you fooled me. All of us, actually. You amazing, stupid, crazy man."

Larabee knew he had had his doubts in the beginning, even if instinct had told him to give the other man a second chance. His desertion in the eyes of overwhelming odds, their certain death, hadn't really been so unexpected. Standish had struck Chris as a survivor. You didn't survive by running toward death.

But the con man had come around, had come back, and he had turned the tables in the pack's favor.

Trusting him after that had been a slow but steep learning curve. Chris believed in second chances. He had followed this feeling inside him, something that had never led him the wrong way. The elusive thief with a criminal record that could fill books had become pack. Chris Larabee had accepted him, faults and all, learning more and more to listen to his primal instincts, not fall for the smoke and mirror routines, to see past the masks.

It had been a sometimes slow process. Very slow. Because Ezra was stubborn and never made things easy. But he was there for them, for all of them, when it mattered. No ulterior motives in the end. As outrageous as some of his cons had been, as crazy as his stunts had sounded, he had never failed.

It had been an amazing journey, an even more amazing discovery to find out who was underneath all the lies and deceit.

He had fallen for this. He had given in to his shifter side, had trusted this enigmatic man with something only Sarah had ever been gifted with, and the result had been astounding.

 _Mine_ , Chris thought before he could catch himself.

Those were strong emotions. As strong as they had been with Sarah. Sarah had been human, not a single shifter in her family, and she had accepted that her husband wasn't completely human. They had found something, something common, an emotion that connected them. He had loved his wife, and her death, the death of his son, had torn him apart.

Wolves weren't prone to suicide. Chris Larabee wasn't a coward who took the easy way out. It had taken a long time to heal the wounds. Years had passed with nothing but anger, pain and devastation as his only emotions.

Until Four Corners.

Until meeting Vin. Finding Buck again. Meeting Nathan and Josiah, helping JD, and finally… Ezra. All of them forming a pack.

The new pack had helped, had knitted the fragments of his soul back together. Ezra… had started something else. A new road he had been reluctant to travel, but finally he had, allowing instinct to override reason.

One step after another.

Now here they were. Here he was.

In the middle of a category five, with an injured Ezra Standish. The man who had a different meaning for him than mere pack mate.

Not at the end of that particular road, Chris mused. Not by a long shot.

"There's so much more to you," he murmured.

Like the wings. Those wonderful, amazing, fascinating wings. They were functional, could lift him, made him capable of flying. And they were still there, despite the fact that he didn't need them right now. It was something like a first clue, but Chris didn't really want to ponder it.

Right now he wanted Ezra to heal, get better, then they would talk.

Listening to the steady breaths, Chris rested his head near the feathered wings, felt them tickled his nose. He inhaled their unique scent, Ezra's scent, which was currently overlaid by blood and medication.

Closeness, pack closeness, helped the healing. While shifters had a sped-up metabolism with superior healing capabilities, being with pack helped members. That, and sleep.

Mine, he thought again as he closed his eyes. _Only mine._

tbc...


	4. Chapter 4

Ezra woke ensconced in darkness. Warm, breathing darkness. Surrounded by a scent he recognized. It was a scent he knew by heart, that he carried with him, that identified him as one of the pack and lately more. It was… familiar, soothing, warm. And so, so intimate. His very soul seemed to relax into the strength the scent held, into the power everywhere.

It was Chris. Pure Chris. The wolf and the man. It was…

His eyes snapped open.

Black fur.

There was black fur around him.

His ears picked up the loud, furious howls of mother nature at her best. Something rattled viciously and there was a banging sound, as if something heavy had just crashed somewhere.

Where…?

How…?

And Chris?!

Pain made itself known, centering deeply in his side. With the pain came the memories. A drunk Josiah, the attack, making a run for it, then… flying and crashing.

It didn't explain Chris.

Ezra blinked, biting back a moan as the pain pulsed again, muscles protesting every move. His wings were like foreign objects, and he was barely able to lift them.

Wings.

Aw, hell, fuck, no!

His wings were out.

For everyone to see.

For Chris.

Who now knew he had wings.

Oh lord. Ohlordohnononono!

His shifter hindbrain suddenly realized what had happened and he almost froze in horror.

Panic spread through him, pushing away the pain, overwhelming his mind, instinct battling with human rational thought. He quickly assessed his situation. He was in what appeared to be one of those emergency stations, an ERSS, there was a storm raging outside, he was injured, weak, and he was alone with Chris Larabee, his team leader, his alpha… his... whatever.

The man who now knew that Ezra Standish wasn't just a normal shifter.

The panic turned into fear and then into terror.

He was going to die.

And if not die, then…

The pressure behind his forehead rose.

Ezra knew what happened to crossbreeds who were discovered by the 'normal' shifters or humans. He had seen others like him get beat up, hunted, chased, nearly killed. He had been told of ancient stories that spoke of his special kind as witch breeds, as evil spawns, as dangerous and impure. Even today, with civilization as it was, the old stories stoked fear, spread night terrors and let people act rashly.

 _He's going to kill me!_ ran through his muddled, almost feverish mind. _End it. End me. Chase me away. Leave me. Packless._

A tiny part laughed hysterically. A packless fox. Right. But was he really a fox? No, he was everything. He was nothing. Like his mother had always told him.

Nothing.

He was not wanted anywhere, belonged nowhere, was something to be hunted. Larabee might just chase him away, bite him out of the pack, but what about the others?

Josiah's attack tangled with horror visions of the others and Ezra felt his brain short-circuit, mixing past and present.

He was going to die. Right away or later on, broken and bleeding, left alone. Ezra felt everything inside him constrict at the very thought of leaving Four Corners Territory, leaving the six men, leaving Chris… Chris of all people.

Because…

His mind stalled, creaking to a painful halt.

Extricating himself from the warmth and comfort of his pack leader, wings dragging along like they didn't belong to him, he suppressed a pained whimper. His side burned, his wings were too heavy for his weakened muscles to move, and he had no energy to spare to make them go away, let alone shift to human form.

He had to get away from here.

Run.

Had he been in a better state of mind he might have questioned the fact that he was in a protected environment, waking with Chris curled like a living shield around him, but he wasn't in that state of mind. He was panicking and while Ezra P. Standish didn't do panic, the exhausted, battered crossbreed did.

Again something banged loudly against the station that was their safety.

But it wasn't safety for him.

Chris was a purebred wolf, the old kind, part of an ancient Fenris line that ran deeply. Fenris were leaders. Strong. Relentless. Fierce. Perfectly able to work alone for a prolonged time. In tune with their instincts. They didn't necessarily need a pack, but when they formed one, it was as strong as them.

And trouble.

The Fenris line showed in Chris' very presence, his power of command, his size and his ferocity. The way he handled the pack, how all members had grown in their individual abilities and strengths. They were all respected members of the town and the whole Territory.

Until now.

Ezra doubted Chris would want anything to do with him after this discovery.

The panic was like a swamp, dragging him under, tearing him from rational thought, and the fox desperately tried to find a way out of the station. He tried to reach for the latch that secured the inner door, but he barely had the energy to even lift himself on his hind legs.

There was another lance of pain and he almost collapsed, his mind scrambling for control for a second as he breathed through the pain. Hot, deep stabs in his side, burning along his abused muscles. Ezra clenched his teeth to suppress the whimpers, but still harsh gasps escaped. The very floor seemed to grow all wavy and twist around him.

Maybe Chris wouldn't kill him right away, might just keep him alive to throw the book at him. Whatever kind of book. Probably something old and worn, filled with lies about crossbreeds and how they were evil. Ezra might end up in some kind of special hell, a prison cell just for him. Escape proof for crossbreeds.

Wings dragging along uselessly, he limped away from the door, seeking another exit. An air vent. A drain. Anything but the door. It was an insurmountable obstacle. He would need to be human for that. And he had no strength left. Every muscle seemed to ache, every breath hammered through his lungs, and his staccato heartbeat pulsed through his head as well.

He had to get out of here, ran through his head. Find safety. Hide. Runhiderun!

Hide from a pack that would surely hunt him down the moment they knew the truth.

There was movement behind him. A powerful shift, one he had gotten to know over the past months he had been part of the Larabee pack. Ezra turned, terror rushing through his body, muscles locking up, his heart stuttering, feeling like the whole world was tilting sideways.

Chris Larabee was an imposing sight as a wolf, so much larger than normal wolves, larger than Buck could ever be, or JD could hope to grow, and the yellow eyes were a clear outward sign of the Fenris. Eye color shifts were rare in wolves and always a sign of the Fenris. With a black fur that seemed to be darker than dark, the thick neck ruff and his posture, he was awe-inspiring.

And terror-inducing.

A black, vengeful spirit. His Death.

Ezra scuttled back, ignoring the sharp stabs of pain, cursing the heavy wings, as his claws scrabbled over the floor. The injured one was starting to ache abominably.

"Ezra," Chris broke the silence, voice calm and deep, hitting a nerve.

Touching something.

Pack.

And more. So much more. Something private, personal, intimate, something only between them.

Ezra felt dizzy, the world starting to swim, and he swallowed hard. A tremor ran through his wings, through his body, and muscles cramped briefly, bringing forth a breathless whimper.

The wolf came closer and he moved back automatically, swallowing down on nausea. Hard, corded muscles shifted underneath midnight fur. Those paws alone could tear him to pieces.

This was his alpha. Chris. Fast, deadly. Relentless energy boiling beneath a deceptively human surface.

He was no match.

Had never been.

The Fenris was raw power and danger, a dark, ferocious, volatile power that ran untamed under this human guise.

He was at this man's complete mercy.

Ezra didn't want to die. He had done a few wrong things in his past, yes. Larabee and the others knew he was – had been - a con, a thief, a liar and a cheat, and he had used his given talents, as well as his many forms, to their advantage ever since becoming part of a regulator pack. They had never known about the shapeshifts, only that he was skilled, a born undercover operative.

But he wasn't a creature of darkness. Being a crossbreed didn't make him evil. He wasn't evil!

He didn't want to die, but die he would. Either at the massive claws and teeth of his pack leader, the man he had trusted so much of himself with, had shared more than just his body. Or Chris would simply lock him up, throw away the key. If he was lucky. He might just kick him out into the storm now.

All that clamored through his exhausted brain, swimming together, making it hard to catch a rational through. He weakly bared his teeth at the hulking form, ready to at least give a token fight, even if nothing short of another Fenris might take down this one.

X X X X

Chris regarded the skittish fox calmly. He tried to make himself less ferocious alpha, less untamed wildness. He knew he wasn't good at handling babies and puppies, but he tried. He wasn't a reassuring presence on his best days like this, his heritage making it difficult, but he had hoped Ezra would be able to see past it. Like he had before. Ezra had never been impressed by the massive black form, the sharp teeth and glowing eyes.

But the fox was nervously eying his surroundings, close to just making a run for it, even if he didn't stand a chance. The terror in the green eyes was hard to stomach, especially when those eyes had reflected a whole different set of emotions not too long ago.

Ezra had never been scared of him. So absolutely terrified, so sure of physical harm coming his way.

This was a man convinced he was about to die. Torn apart by a Fenris, by his pack leader.

The wolf could smell the pain, was aware just how badly off the other shifter was, but Ezra was in flight mode and the adrenaline was pushing all that back. There was no hint of Ezra trying to attack him, despite the weakly lifting lips, baring sharp little teeth. It was hardly a challenge. Standish wanted to run from a perceived threat. The way he twitched, the way his muscles coiled, he would make a run, even if couldn't get any further than maybe a foot or two in his condition.

Because Chris had seen his wings. Because Chris knew. Because Chris knew he wasn't normal.

"Ezra," the black wolf said softly, voice dropping into a soothing range, using the power of the pack leader.

The fox winced, but a part of him reacted to the pack alpha.

"Relax."

The storm howled wildly outside and Ezra's ears turned like little radar dishes, scouting for an escape. As much as his instinctive reaction was to stay close to the protection and strength Chris offered, a very primal part was all for survival, which meant running. Finding an escape route.

There was none.

"Ezra," Larabee repeated patiently and slowly stepped closer. "You are safe here."

The fox warily watched his approach. The wings quivered, too weak to retract, absolutely useless right now. Just a tell concerning Standish's emotional state of mind. His whole body was trembling now. His whole self-confidence had been stripped away, baring his heart and soul for everyone to see. For the alpha to see.

::Ezra::

Using the pack link had the crossbreed freeze and stare. He was panting, in such panic and pain that Chris wanted to just curl up next to the terrified shifter and calm him.

::Nothing has changed:: Chris murmured.

Emotions were gathering thickly between them. He felt the stubbornness, the terror, the need to survive coupled with absolute hopelessness. It was all running through Ezra and it was all clear for him through the pack bond.

No, not the pack. The private, more intimate connection they had within the pack. The one reserved for those who were more than pack mates.

::Everything has changed:: was the weak protest, the voice filled with barely suppressed hysteria. ::I'm dead. I know I'm dead. Don't drag it out. Just end this misery and be done with it, Mr. Larabee::

The wolf closed more distance one slow step at a time. He didn't want to startle the other man more than he had to. Chris tried to ignore the words that told him just how deeply ingrained the fear of a crossbreed was when it came to discovery and their fate afterwards. It hurt him to hear how convinced the former con man was that he would die today. Ezra believed he was about to kill him, simply because he was a crossbreed. It was such an outrageous, outlandish notion, so foreign and far from Chris' mind…

::Ezra…::

By now the fox was pressed against the wall, shaking. The desolation was like a living, breathing thing hanging over him. All his control had gone out the window, the pain and terror clear for Chris to see. And the embarrassment, which only fed the anxiety levels and turned everything into a vicious circle.

::You are still you, Ez. Wings and all::

Chris was towering over him, but it couldn't be helped. He was a lot bigger than the other shifter. Ezra had never been impressed by size or sheer strength before. It had impressed Chris in turn. Ezra had gone up against much bigger opponents, had brought them down with swift moves and a lot of skilled fighting. Sure, he had been at the receiving end of a fist or two in an altercation, but he had never cowered down.

This… this was unnatural.

He lowered his snout, tongue gently licking over one dark ear.

::You are mine. My pack and mine::

The words had Ezra freeze, the green eyes going comically wide. The words, simple as they were, cut through the haze of fear. He abruptly sat down as his muscles refused to work any longer, the wings sliding down like a feathery cape. A breathy, broken whimper escaped his lips and fell against the wall with his good side, eyes sliding closed for a moment. It had been a tremendous effort on his part to stay on his paws all the time.

Surrender.

Absolute surrender.

It pained Larabee to see and feel it, because Ezra Standish was far from submissive. He might be pack, but he never submitted, which had been a challenge in the past. Sometimes a daily challenge in those first months. A pack didn't have the hierarchy many thought, more of fluidly moving positions, but everyone listened to the pack leader.

Chris had enjoyed himself more than he had ever confessed to anyone, though Vin had known. The challenge had kept him on his toes and Ezra had been a source of renewed life for him.

"Chris…" the fox breathed, almost pleading. "I… please… I'm…"

"I still want you," was the soft reply. "And I want to know about you. All of you. When you're better. We will talk, Ez. Really talk. No lies."

The fox was gaping. Truly gaping. The usually so vivid green eyes, sparkling with mischief and delight, were clouded with confusion. But there was hope. Tiny, tiny sparks of hope.

Chris nuzzled against him, silently amused at rendering his little gray fox speechless, then licked over the snout. It was as close to a kiss as a wolf could get in this form, and still it meant something more than simply a kiss could relay. He bathed the fox's head in calming licks, over one eye and along an ear, feeling the confusion, the hope, the want.

How could Ezra believe Chris would ever hurt him like that? Take his life over the discovery that he was a crossbreed? No alpha would do that. No pack functioned on fear and a reign of terror, death sentences and capital punishment. All Larabee had ever asked for was loyalty and respect, openness and trust.

Ezra started to relax involuntarily, the power of the alpha surrounding him. It was a familiar power, a familiar scent, and Chris was also all too familiar with getting this obstinate man to surrender at least for a moment.

::Never lied to you:: came the pained, despairing whisper. ::Please believe me that I never did. I didn't… couldn't… I promised… I did…::

Chris knew that. Not after the wily little thief had joined his pack. Ezra had always been truthful, but he had never opened up to anyone without asking. Even then the words had led everyone astray, deflecting and obfuscating.

::I know, Ez::

::I promised. Never to lie. Never to run out on you again:: He sounded desperate, close to frantic, shaking like a leaf. Like this was all the time he had left, just a moment to set things right. At the end of his emotional rope and physical endurance.

::And you didn't. You haven't run from a fight yet:: Another lick and nuzzle. ::Trust you, Ezra. Absolutely. I wouldn't have taken you in otherwise. I trust everyone in my pack::

Something collided hard with the ERSS's outside and Ezra flinched. Chris took the opportunity to nose against the gray head and push him gently but firmly back to the bed. He went as far as taking the protesting shifter by the scruff of his neck and help him up. The wings dragged by his side like foreign limbs. When the black wolf curled around him, nose and sharp-toothed jaws arranging the extra wings, Ezra stared at him.

"You don't mind?" he asked, voice a shaky little whisper, filled with hope and disbelief. Almost like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. For Chris to become violent.

"No."

"But I'm… I…"

::You're a crossbreed:: Chris confirmed calmly when the other stopped. He nibbled one ear. ::Don't care. You're mine::

The possessive feeling racing through him should be shocking, almost embarrassing, but wasn't. It was the truth. Ezra was his.

Ezra closed his eyes, still shaking minutely. He visibly hated the loss of control, the openness caused by his confusion and the physical pain.

Chris really didn't care. About who and what Ezra really was, about his perceived weakness, about his loss of control, about anything. Not right now and somehow, not ever. Here, within the confines of these reinforced walls, he felt like everything was alright with his world. With their world.

"Ezra," he coaxed. "I won't ever hurt you."

It got him an almost violent flinch.

He met the green gaze, forced the small fox to hold his eyes. "I would never become violent with one of my pack. I would never hurt you over what you are. I'm not a savage and I'm sure as hell not some simple-minded, backwater, opinionated, rabid zealot."

There was another tremor and Chris smelled the fear recede, but not completely. He pushed his snout against Ezra's.

"Did I ever give you reason to fear me?"

"No," was the soft answer. "But you never knew about me. I lied. I promised to never lie to you. I'm a man of my word. I broke it," he added, voice so low it was barely audible.

"I never asked if you are a crossbreed, Ezra Standish. You never told me, true, but I also never asked." He let amusement bleed into his voice. "I am not a violent person, despite my bloodline. I don't tear out anyone's throat on a whim. No one of this pack would have done anything to you."

Ezra looked away, radiating distress and exhaustion. Chris was aware that this secret, being a crossbreed, wasn't something Ezra would have shared lightly.

He curled around the smaller shifter, feeling the tension slowly drain out of the fox as he surrendered to the calming presence of the pack alpha, and finally Ezra sighed and buried into the dense, black fur.

::I still want you, Ezra Standish:: Chris whispered. ::As part of this team. As part of me::

Green eyes cracked open, met yellow ones. There was hope warring with disbelief. Chris nuzzled close.

::You bear my scent. My mark. You are part of the Larabee pack and you are also mine:: If the last was said possessively again, Ezra didn't comment and Chris refused to analyze his feelings.

There was a shaky sigh, but no words. Chris gently tugged the wing closer, marveling at the taste and smell of it. It was pure Ezra, so new and still familiar. The moment his teeth had closed over the trembling limb, Ezra had stared at him, fear mixed with something else in his eyes, but he had no strength left to even tug the wing away.

Did he really think Chris would harm the wing? Break the bone? The very thought had Larabee want to throw up.

::Sleep, Ez. We'll talk later::

The fox still stared at him, but he finally did relax completely, sliding off into sleep.

tbc...


	5. Chapter 5

Chris watched the crossbreed sleep, the small body buried deep within the long, black fur, contrasting in so many ways. He studied the wings, their complex structure, finding them endlessly fascinating, simply because they were Ezra's. He nosed at them, their scent familiar, their structure not. He dragged a broad tongue over the disheveled feathers, smoothing them haphazardly.

When the fox shifted a little, his head now against Chris' flank, resting over his heart, he smiled to himself.

 _What am I going to do with you?_ he thought almost wistfully.

Vin had once told him that what they shared was more than a loose connection, a fling, and he knew it. Had known it from the start. Buck had been a bit more direct.

"You've got instincts, Larabee. Really good instincts. They tell you this is more than just entertainment. You could get that around every corner. But you got him, pard. 'Cause he's what you need."

Yes, he could get a roll in the hay if he wanted to, but he hadn't wanted casual. Sleeping with Ezra hadn't been to sate a carnal desire. Their first time together had been neither hesitant and shy, nor a quick fuck never spoken of again.

It had felt… different.

Their encounters had always been intense, right from the start. It hadn't been a one-night stand to begin with and it had never been a roll in the hay without foreplay or the afterglow of a warm body beside him. Sometimes it had been just shared bedspace, enjoying the companionship, no words spoken.

With Sarah his instincts had told him that she was the right one. She had felt good. She had fit him. With Ezra, the very same instinct had clamored that he was perfect. Chris couldn't compare them, didn't want to. Ezra was the Here and Now. His past would always be with him, the happiness, the pain, the devastation and loss, but Chris had come to accept it.

"Listen to that," had been Buck's sage advice. "You got it right with him."

There had been so many subtle hints and signs. And even more not so subtle ones.

Taking up with an opinionated, contrary man like Ezra had been adventurous. He never submitted. He wasn't that kind of person. He was strong, independent, a free spirit that had drawn Chris close. The stubbornness was in every cell of his body. Mulish, almost. So different and yet so perfect. Buck was his best friend, Vin was like a lost brother, but Ezra…

Ezra had never fallen into a handy category.

It was what made them so perfect together. He met the dominant predator and put it back into its place without endangering its alpha status. He walked a fine line along a razor-sharp edge, and he did it without a safety net. He demanded and he gave, balancing the scales. He was a predator in his own right, never became prey, but he also never challenged Chris.

It was all a dance. A teasing dance. The contrast.

Chris had refused to give it a name, even when Vin openly spoke of it, said the very word Chris refused to. Tanner had called him a lot of names over his denial of the obvious.

It was like a blessing and a curse, and now even more so.

Ezra was his. His alone and he would fight everyone over the crossbreed's life and soul. There was this hot flash racing through him, had him bare teeth and look for a target, to think someone could lay a hand on this man just because of what he could do.

Chris wouldn't be able to let him go, leave the pack and him, but he couldn't name that feeling. Didn't want to, really. It wasn't the same he had felt for his late wife. It wasn't what he had had with Sarah.

The pack themselves never spoke of it either, but they were very much aware of it. It was plain to feel among the Seven, even if one was hiding everything he truly was, letting no one peek any more deeply than he was comfortable with. Maybe, aside from Chris, Vin was one of the few who understood Ezra best. The tracker never commented on it, but he was aware of more than most.

He was also the only one who had seen what Chris had. The different color, the wings, the crossbreed heritage.

Protectiveness rose inside the wolf, had him want to snarl at an invisible enemy. Ezra wouldn't be hunted, wouldn't be chased out of the town or thrown into jail.

 _Mine_ , whispered through him with a renewed ferocity that even surprised himself. _Mine!_

Chris forced his thoughts away from the extremely emotional, very sensitive topic of what Ezra Standish was to him. His mind turned to the storm, listening to it rage, wondering if it had already been upgraded to a Centennial, because it sounded like one. It was a storm that would last a while, he knew instinctively. He and Ezra would be trapped here for some more time.

Another part went over the reason why they were here right now. Larabee knew exactly what had happened and when they got out of here, the moment Ezra was in Nathan's hands and taken care of, he would have a long, private talk with Sanchez.

X

Ezra twitched a few times throughout his otherwise restful sleep and Chris calmly licked his head, the accessible wing, his ears. It soothed him as much as it did the wounded shifter, drawing soft whines from the sleeping man. Muscles relaxed under his ministrations and sometimes a whispered groan escaped the fox's lips.

Chris caught some sleep himself, attuned to his patient's every shift, but Ezra didn't try to disentangle himself again. If at all he seemed intent on becoming one with the pack alpha.

Larabee didn't mind at all.

X

For a while Ezra drifted in and out of sleep.

The storm had by now reached its peak and whoever was still outside in this weather would be an idiot. Chris knew from experience that these idiots existed and they had had rescues of such people in the past. Right now he would be of no use. He and Ezra were stuck here for the next days.

He didn't mind.

Whenever the crossbreed woke, he fed him supplements and nourishing pastes from their stocked pantry. There had been mumbled protests, half-hearted and still filled with a little more fear than Chris wanted to hear, but Ezra followed his orders. He responded to him on a basic level, to the alpha.

Chris kept up his soothing presence, encouraging his pack mate to snuggle in close. It buffered the stress. Ezra gave up his resistance after the second time and just… followed orders.

For once.

Larabee felt amusement rise. Sure, Standish always followed orders, but never without argument, griping, grumbling or just a scowl. It was his nature to be contrary, to keep Chris on his toes, to mock salute him as he left for patrol or to report back late, playing the tardiness card just to see the alpha glare.

Chris expected it, needed it, was always looking forward to the next game they could play.

Now, the protests were just the same, and as always he did what Chris wanted in the end. The medication and food helped. Larabee shifted whenever he needed to check the deep cuts, cleaning them twice more, much to Ezra's annoyance and pained groans.

Shifters healed quickly, much faster than humans, and while it was still a bad injury, deep and rather serious, he was healing. The weakness was the greatest hindrance right now. While skin mended, the body took a lot of energy, the metabolism speeding up, and it was something the smaller shifter had to compensate. With food and water, with nutritious supplements. Since their food supply was limited, staying in his fox shape served both purposes: faster healing and reduced food intake, but a lot more than a normal fox his size would need.

Chris still forced him to eat in short intervals, helping to keep up his energy levels by insisting on the food groups that aided that.

X

"Ezra," he said when the other shifter was finally more himself, clear-headed and awake.

The green eyes held a wary look, but he wasn't as frightened as just mere hours ago.

Chris looked at him, holding those eyes, keeping his own features open. "I already told you, I don't care what you are."

The fox curled his tail more tightly around himself. Making himself smaller. The wings were still out. Thankfully. Chris didn't want them to disappear.

"You are pack, Ezra. You are mine," he repeated with more force. "Crossbreed or not. Mine! Do you understand?"

"You said so before."

He smiled and hopped onto the mattress, nudging against the slightly bowed head. "And apparently you listened. For once." He nibbled playfully at one ear.

Ezra flicked it away, a look of indignation on his light features. The wolf gave it a wet lick for good measure. There was a playfulness in him he only had around this man, and now that Standish was finally his shifter self for a longer time, Chris wanted to lick, nibble and taste him, scent him, leave his own scent all over the light fur.

::I meant everything I said:: Chris said, serious again. ::Everything. You're a pain in the ass, the most obstinate man I've ever had the honor of knowing, and sometimes you drive me crazy. But you are mine. You belong to my pack. You fit. Seamlessly. Like a missing piece. We are Seven, Ezra. Always will be::

::Even though I hid this from you? Something that might have endangered the pack?::

Chris glared, but it was an anger not directed at Ezra.

::You know how my kind would be viewed by the lovely citizens:: Standish drove his point home. ::Some might take up a gun or pitch fork, drive the abomination out of town. Some might even make a sport out of it. Witch hunts are popular, even nowadays, with the right incentive::

The growl ripping from Chris' throat was frightening.

::No one will touch you! You're not an abomination! And no one will drive you out of town!::

::The Judge might::

::Fuck Travis then!::

::I'd rather not:: was the dry reply.

Chris huffed a sigh. ::Travis gave me Four Corners. He gave me the freedom I need to protect the Territory. He might even know what you are, Ez, because he's shown himself to be just as wily as you::

::A… disturbing thought::

::You never lied:: Chris reiterated, picking up the thread of before. ::I just never asked the correct questions:: He tilted his head, holding the fascinated gaze. ::But I'm asking now. And I want the truth::

Ezra swallowed, tucking his wings in tightly, though they slid a little way down again. A tell, emotions on open display, unguarded.

::Okay:: he finally whispered. ::Ask your questions, Mr. Larabee::

He rumbled, the sound filled with more annoyance than anger, but still Ezra's ears flattened in an automatic reaction. It was so completely unlike him that it showed Chris how badly unbalanced he was.

::Chris:: he said calmly. ::I'm still Chris and always will be::

::Chris…:: Standish sounded almost brittle.

He nuzzled against the white-gray head. ::I don't like the distance, Ezra. Not between us. Never between us. You don't have to remove yourself in any way. You never have to be afraid of me::

Chris couldn't think of changing anything between them. He couldn't imagine someone else at his side. He couldn't think of a time he wouldn't want this man, despite all their arguments and heated discussions and different views on a subject matter – pick one, any one. They understood each other; perfectly. Chris had opened up like to no one else before.

Ezra leaned into the bigger wolf, seeking closeness, reacting to the pack leader, and Chris smiled warmly inside. A whine-rumble-purr came from Ezra's lips. Chris lowered his head, resting it against Ezra's, the silence between them neither heavy nor uncomfortable.

 _I want you close_ , he thought. _Always._

X

Throughout the next hours, they talked. Never for longer stretches, more like an exchange of information in brief intervals. Ezra wasn't used to revealing so much about himself, but there was nothing to do but lay here, listen to the storm, keeping each other company.

And despite what he had always told himself, Ezra wasn't a loner by nature. It had been his choice, a necessity, until he had become part of Chris' pack, one of the Seven. The pack had started to influence him, drawing him out of this lonely, secretive existence, and he had come to rely on them in so many little ways that he hadn't been aware of it at first.

Like he had come to rely on and finally trust Chris. He had allowed a pack bond to form, enabling him to talk to each member through a personal, pack-only connection. That he had also allowed Chris so close on a personal level had been a massive gamble.

A weakness.

And a curse.

Because Ezra Standish wasn't as strong as he wanted to be, as strong as his mother had always told him he had to be. To never let anyone close, to always be on top, to take and never be taken himself.

Chris had become close. From the leader of the pack he had chosen to stay with, to work as a regulator with, to a friend. And then…

He had given in to the desire within him.

Ezra would have been a liar if he had said he hadn't been affected by the play of muscle under the black shirt, the clear sign of a body honed to kill. The controlled wildness was… and had always been attractive. A coiled spring, ready to be unleashed. A deadly killer.

It had been a slow dance, getting closer and closer, and finally the physical attraction had led to much more. Ezra had taken great care not to reveal his crossbreed abilities, even when they had become so intimate.

Now…

His wings twitch a little.

Chris opened his eyes, nosing gently against him. Ezra felt the rough tongue drag over his ears, then his team leader scented the injured wing. The deep abrasions had started to heal, though the feathers would need a little longer to grow back. That would be itchy; he just knew it.

::I'm good::

::You're healing fast. You might be able to shift soon, so I can take look at the injury in human form.::

Ezra pulled his wings a little closer to his body. He had always been a fast healer. A blessing of his cursed crossbreed existence. In the two years he had been in Four Corners now there had never been a severe injury, so it had never stood out just how quickly Ezra was on the mend again. Now the cat was out of the bag.

Chris nuzzled at the feathered limbs, drawing him out of his downward spiraling thoughts again. ::What's your first form?::

The green eyes briefly evaded Chris'. Leave it to Larabee to start with the question Ezra had been most terrified of.

He had promised to answer his alpha's questions. He wouldn't lie or evade, to give half-truths. It was just the hardest truths of all.

Finally, "This one," he whispered.

"So you're a fox," Chris stated, tilting his head with a puzzled expression. Then his ears flicked. "Just not red?"

Because red had always been Ezra's coloring. Red war normal. Red was to blend in. Red was… a lie.

He suppressed the next wave of panic.

"Gray. Always gray. It's… rare. So I changed the color. To blend in."

Larabee nodded. "You presented yourself as a fox to my pack. Why not a wolf?"

Ezra's ears flattened. Dear lord, the man knew how to hit all the right buttons. "I didn't dare," he answered truthfully.

"Didn't dare?"

"You're a Fenris."

"So?"

"I wasn't confident enough to possibly pull it off forever," Standish murmured. ::You would have known. The truth.::

Chris regarded him evenly. ::So the fox::

The winged shoulders shrugged and Ezra winced only briefly at the stab of pain from his still healing side.

::More natural for me::

::But not the coloring::

::I had to make a few… choices. The color was one. I had used red before. It was… almost normal::

Chris waited until Ezra dared to look at him before he answered. ::I like gray:: he said evenly. ::It suits you::

The stunned expression lasted only a minute, then Standish had himself under control again.

"As… as to your question… to answer it truthfully as I promised… I'm really this," Ezra added hesitantly. "All of this. It's my first form."

The wolf blinked. Ezra twitched a wing as if to drive his point home.

"Fuck," Chris breathed, baring teeth in an automatic reflex.

The fox's ears were plastered to his head again and a hot wave of fear coursed through the crossbreed. Wings tightened against the slender form and he felt himself curl up, shying away from Larabee's threatening display. Instinct was a bitch and right now instinct chose to rear its unwanted head to remind him that Ezra Standish would never be a match for this man, the Fenris, the pack leader, the one he had given everything to and for. Chris could still change his mind…

::Ezra:: Chris murmured, pushing his nose against Standish's. ::Ezra, no. Don't. I'm sorry::

Loss of control. Again. So plain vulnerable and open, so easy to read. Ezra was cursing himself nine ways to Sunday and still he couldn't bring up the most basic shields. He was a failure, an embarrassment.

::Ez:: came the soft, coaxing voice. ::This isn't about you. I'm just amazed. Again and again. You are unique.::

His alpha kept up the very intimate contact until the wings slackened and Ezra's whole body relaxed.

::Didn't know a first form could already be a cross between two:: Chris murmured, sounding far from disgusted. It was more curiosity.

::Yeah, well, here I am::

::I'm glad you are::

Caught by the comment, Ezra stammered wordlessly, let the much larger shifter nudge him until he was right between Chris' legs. The large head rested over his back, putting no pressure on his wound, but close enough to bury the sharp-teethed muzzle into the gray feathers.

::You really are fascinated by them:: Ezra managed, sounding wary, but also surprised.

::Sue me. I like them:: Chris answered almost defiantly. ::They're you. Part of you. So far I haven't seen a part I don't like::

Ezra felt his breath catch and something hot flashed through him, quickly smothered as he caught control of himself.

 _Dear lord_ , he thought faintly.

As much as they never talked about what truly ran between them, what everyone was clearly aware of, this had been a very open declaration. In a very Larabee way, but still…

Teeth closed over the feathered limb, positioning the wayward wing how it should be, and it was thrilling and disturbing in one for the gray fox. He just buried his muzzle in Chris' long neck fur, refusing to think about it.

tbc...


	6. Chapter 6

The storm hadn't really lost any of its intensity. Going by the creaks and groans around them, the repeated banging noises as things were thrown against the ERSS, it was truly a Centennial.

Chris listened to it with half an ear, neither scared nor disturbed the force of nature. He knew he was safe here, knew they had enough food, water, and everything else they might need. Looking at Ezra, he carefully asked his next question.

"It never occurred to you to trust us… me… with your true nature?"

Ezra's ears went to his head automatically, wings tightly pressed against his sides, and he had ducked down like expecting an attack. Chris hated to use the con man's current imbalance, the way his most basic shields wavered again and again, to get to the bottom of the whole charade.

But Ezra had told him to ask questions. So he did.

"Sometimes," was the barely audible reply.

"You never went with that 'sometimes'."

"No." It was a quiet, almost strained denial.

"An alpha's priority is to the pack," Chris told him evenly, as if reciting some ancient lore. Of course, there was no book on being a leader, on how to handle a team like the men he had under his command, but it was in his very nature. It was instinct and a natural aptitude. "The alpha protects everyone within the pack. I had always believed you knew you were under that protection, Ezra, no matter what."

The crossbreed swallowed, tongue licking over his lips. Another nervous tell. Yes, he was wide open and Chris was pained to see him this vulnerable.

"We might have had our differences," Larabee went on, voice laced with humor, "and we still have them. And I enjoy them, Ez. I enjoy pitting my wit against yours. I didn't think you would see this as a reason to hide what you are."

Still hide, he added silently. After two years. After everything they had been and now had become.

"The first instinct of a crossbreed if to hide," Standish finally mumbled. "Always. It's what we are taught. Hide who we are, lies protect us, the truth kills us."

"I wouldn't have killed you, damnit!" Chris growled, expression intense and close to feral at the very thought the fox could think he would. "Just because you can shift in whatever form you want? I don't believe in that shit about evil and abominations, Ezra! I never have! No pack leader would kill a pack member cold-blooded!"

Well, they shouldn't, Chris amended to himself. Unless someone tried to kill him, Larabee didn't just go around killing people at random. Least of all his team!

The small head ducked back as canines glinted in the artificial light of the shelter. "I know."

"And still you hid."

"I…" He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. "I hid. I had to. I realize that it's a matter of perception, but instinct is, as they say, a bitch. Life-long indoctrinations are, too. It's something I can't shake. I can't go against what has become second nature. And then… I betrayed you. I turned and ran out on you. I couldn't think of a single way how my… revelation would be perceived in any way that didn't get me killed."

"You came back," Chris murmured, pained by the words.

"Yes. Yes, I did, but I betrayed your trust in myself. After that… I didn't dare say anything about who I was." Ezra's wings quivered a little and he hugged them tightly to his slender form. His tail was wrapped just as tightly around his lower body.

"And then you became pack. My pack. I'm your pack leader and even though you're not a wolf, you followed. That's against instinct, too, right?"

Because Chris had met Maude Standish once and he knew that everything Ezra Standish had done in the past, it had gone against everything the woman had taught her son. She had no compassion, wouldn't give a single dime to a person in need, wouldn't throw a game of cards because the player would go home broke and hungry. Maude was a shark. Not in a shifter sense, but Chris was convinced that if she was a shifter, she wouldn't be cute and cuddly.

As much as the whole team had been amused by Ezra's behavior while his mother was there, she had set Chris on edge like no other personal visitor had before her. Something had been off and if he had analyzed those feelings back then, he might not have been as amused as the others by Ezra's loss of composure. Back then he had chalked it up to a parent upsetting a child in their new work place. Maude had made no secret out of her disdain for the law profession her son now worked in, insinuating it was probably a big con.

So Ezra had thrown a lot of his teachings into the wind, except for the one about hiding what he truly was.

"That's not the same," the crossbreed argued. "Look at Josiah and Nathan. They are bears. Granted, very different characters, but loners. Like a fox," Ezra drove his point home.

"You're not like them."

And while the bear as an animal was a loner, the human who shifted into one wasn't. Shifters didn't reflect all traits of their animal form. Ezra had played his part, gave everyone what they wanted to see.

"You do realize that the first time I was coerced by a very vindictive Judge with a malicious sense of humor," was the annoyed addition.

"You stayed after your year was up," the Fenris reminded him, a glint of humor visible in the yellow eyes.

Ezra sighed, tail tip twitching. He glared at it, like his tail was a traitor, had a mind of its own.

"You are pack. All of you are pack," Chris went on. "You are my team, the men I work with, and it doesn't matter where you come from, what you have done in the past, what your abilities are. It doesn't matter at all!"

"I couldn't tell you," the crossbreed said, sounding almost pleading now. "You… you were more to me than just a person I had to work with. I had come to… form bonds. Relationships. Friendships. Not just a temporary partnership, a business relationship… I didn't understand what a pack meant, but then you happened!" It sounded almost accusing. "You… you offered and like a fool I accepted!"

"You aren't a fool," Chris told him quietly.

"For a long time I thought so. You became a friend and then I made the most grievous error a con man can ever commit."

"You slept with your boss?"

The green eyes flared. "No. Yes. Yes, we slept together and I didn't know why you even wanted me, but I was… I felt…"

"Happy?"

"Yes." Ezra turned his head away, refusing to meet the knowing eyes. "This suddenly felt like home, not just one of the many places I've passed through. I belonged," he whispered, almost desperate now. "I had friends. Friendships. Relationships. You wanted me, despite knowing my rather shady past, and it wasn't just because you needed something from me."

"An alpha doesn't abuse rank like that," Larabee told him, feeling a surge of anger at the implications that maybe, in Ezra's past, something like that had happened. To him or to someone he knew. "I didn't sleep with you to get something. I did it because I wanted you, still want you…" He dropped his voice in a low rumble. "Because there is something between us I can't shake off."

Again, the unspoken word hung between them and Ezra stared at him, those vivid eyes reflecting it back at him. They were both aware that their casual relationship had stopped being that a while ago. A long, long while ago. Not just a few weeks, or months.

"I couldn't tell you," the crossbreed groaned desperately. "Whenever I wanted to, I knew it was just another betrayal. And after… after… everything…" He exhaled sharply. "It would have destroyed everything… me, you… the pack…"

::Ezra, no::

::Yes!::

::It didn't destroy us now:: Chris reminded him with infinite patience and gentleness.

Ezra's expression was pure agony. ::This, here, was different! You saw me… and I couldn't hide and couldn't stop you from finding out who I really am! I was…:: A low, suffering whine escaped him. ::Facing you with all my senses intact… conscious… I know it wouldn't have been pretty!::

Now the wings tried to spread open by the sheer agitation radiating off him and Ezra winced as the strained muscles protested. He barely managed to get them off the mattress and they ended up a messy heap. He panted with the exertion, shaking badly from the emotional outpour.

"It might not have been pretty," Chris rumbled as he nosed the uncooperative appendages closer to the light gray form. "But I wouldn't have made you leave."

Ezra winced again. This time because the words hit too close to home.

"I would never make you leave, Ezra P. Standish," the wolf told him, voice dropping into a soothing murmur as he nosed against the other shifter's neck. "I admit that not knowing what you are, getting it dumped on me like that… it… is painful. I'm your alpha. I should know this."

Ezra shunned away again, but there was hardly room and he kept entangling his wings. Larabee's low, warning rumble had him freeze, the spike of fear too sharp to be ignored. Chris lightly tugged at one ear.

"I am your alpha," he repeated. "But I'm also your friend. You have at least five more of them. You are not alone any more, Ezra Standish."

Chris could almost see Ezra's thoughts whirling around in his head. He wanted to run. So hard and fast. But he also wanted to stay here.

"Crossbreeds never talk about themselves," Ezra finally choked out, emotions fighting for release. The emotional tidal wave grew larger, threatening to become a tsunami of uncontrolled dimensions, and he bowed his head. "Even if we think we have found… someone to trust. Never tell anyone who and what you are. Word spreads. Word cannot be stopped. Anyone who knows can slip up. Our lives depend on it."

"You know we won't. Vin won't. I want the pack to know, but if you really fear them…"

"I don't fear them!" Ezra snapped, bristling at the implication. "I fear what an excited tale of Mr. Dunne might entail. I fear that Mr. Wilmington's boasting might let him slip up!"

Chris slowly shook his head. "Won't happen. This is a serious matter, Ezra. A very serious one. It's about your safety and well-being. Pack keeps secrets. We have kept many so far. Yours will be just another one."

He deflated a little. "I trust you," he finally said, staring at the mattress. "Good lord, I shouldn't ever have, but I trust you. The pack. You. My alpha. I let things slip and lived with the fear of repercussions."

"We're not letting anything happen to you. No one in town will know. Not Mary, not Inez, not Casey or Nettie, no one."

It was a solemn vow, one Chris would always follow. His team, his pack, came first.

Chris was suddenly very human and his broad hands captured the narrow fox head, thumbs brushing over the light fur.

::Ezra::

::I wouldn't run out on you again:: was the shaky promise. ::Even if things came to light… got ugly… I wouldn't::

::I know::

::I'll stay:: Ezra breathed. ::Always. I'll…::

::I know:: Chris repeated, interrupting the desperate words.

::But it could hurt all of you!::

::It won't. I weathered through too much to get us where we are. You know people were wary of us, of the mixture we brought. We protected them, kept the Territory safe::

::This is different…::

He pressed a kiss against the soft forehead, silencing the protest. Chris carded his fingers through the silky fur, along the wings, coaxing them to open so he could check on the torn out feathers and their general condition. He straightened a few rogue ones and combed through the rest like he would through hair.

Ezra watched him, fascinated, his own emotions tumbling through him, overwhelming his still tired and exhausted mind. Too much had happened. Too much would still happen. He was scared. He was actually terrified. Even with the leader of the pack on his side, even with a Fenris next to him, the fact remained that he was a crossbreed.

The sure caresses, the meticulous grooming, had a rather relaxing effect.

"You're beautiful," Chris murmured, stroking the uninjured skin, letting the warmth of his touch suffuse into the turmoiled mind, calming the crossbreed. "Very beautiful."

Satisfied with his work, he shifted and curled up around him again. A lot still remained unsaid between them, even if they both felt the intensity of their relationship. Chris refused to be baited into analyzing his feelings on a much deeper level and Ezra was too busy biting back the primal panic that wanted to rear up whenever he thought about leaving the shelter when the storm had passed.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"Nothin' t'be sorry for," Chris replied.

Ezra struggled with an automatic reply, then simply buried his nose in the dense, black fur.

Rumbling softly, the wolf rested his head on the smaller form, covering Ezra almost completely as the crossbreed slipped into a doze once more to give his recovering body what it needed.

Fine tremors ran through the other, then finally he quieted down. The presence of his alpha helped evening out the waves.

tbc...


	7. Chapter 7

The next update will take a little longer since I'm on holiday for a few days and won't take my laptop with me. I'm one of those old fashioned people who can't type on a tablet. I need a real keyboard. Everything else drives me crazy.  
So, next chapter will take until the middle of next week when I'm back. Sorry! In the meantime: some emotional h/c and some smut, which is why this story is rate M :) XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

The pitter-patter of rain was a soft background noise. Sometimes the rain strengthened and the noise changed into one of a tiny waterfall rushing down the roof. The wind howled around them, but it had ceased to be a storm.

Chris had briefly checked the situation outside, unlocking both doors and surveying the dark and gloomy landscape. The torrential rain stopped him from going more than a step outside their shelter. The clouds hung thick and dark in the sky, looking threatening and like this could and would take at least another day to clear. Water rushed through the canyon, the small stream swollen into a raging force of nature, and even in the gloom he could see that the storm had taken its toll. They might not even make it back the way they had come. There was no path to follow left.

Ezra had tried to move into a position that let him see outside, craning his neck, but there was nothing there to see anyway.

Chris came back, cocking one eyebrow. "I think we'll be here a while longer."

"Oh joy."

He chuckled and scratched the fox's head, tugging playfully at one ear. It was strangely enjoyable to see Ezra in his shifted form. Even if the tugged ear twitched, the narrow features twisted in annoyance, and the wings flapped in a useless display of displeasure.

"It's not so bad," Larabee said and sat down next to his pack mate. "Gives us some more time."

Ezra looked up at him, the green eyes suddenly filled with realization and a hint of tension. Chris kept up running his fingers like a blunt comb through the longish neck fur. He scratched his nails over the skin underneath, drawing an unconsciously uttered purr.

"I like spending this time here with you, Ezra," he said quietly. "Getting to know you. More of you."

Because Standish couldn't run away. Sure, he could clam up and refuse to talk. But he wouldn't lie.

The crossbreed leaned into the massaging fingers, eyes closed, clearly losing himself in his shifter side. He hummed softly. There was a sudden gurgle and Chris had to laugh at the expression of embarrassment.

"Hungry?"

"I could eat," he replied.

Chris looked at the half-closed eyes, took in the bliss reflected on the fox's features, and he again tugged at one soft ear. Ezra opened his eyes and huffed.

"You keep doing that," he muttered. "Why?"

"Because."

Narrowed green eyes stared at him. "Not an answer."

"Well, it's mine."

Ezra's annoyance grew and Chris laughed, still massaging the soft ear.

"You rarely ever show your fox, Ezra. Seeing you as you are, it's… it's something I can't stop wanting to touch. Because now I can."

Chris' fingers slid down to the wings, still endlessly fascinated by them, and they fluttered under his ministrations. Ezra looked almost embarrassed when the purrs started once more.

::I hate you:: he complained.

Chris laughed again and stopped the ministrations. The crossbreed unconsciously leaned forward, trying to follow the retreating hand, then caught himself. The expression was one of embarrassment.

"Weren't you offering food just now?" Ezra asked shakily.

"Hm." He petted the wings one more time and finally rose. "I remember. What are you in the mood for?"

"Not much to choose from. Crunchy stuff of questionable origin. Dried mystery meat. Sticky paste."

Chris chuckled. "I'll see what I can whip up."

XxXxXx

The first time Ezra shifted his shape almost brought him down to his knees. Well, it actually did, had him gasp in pain, vertigo hitting his senses. Chris' arms went around him, holding him, giving him something to anchor himself on.

"Easy there. Just easy. You did good."

Lips moved against his ear and the warm breath had Ezra shiver. The power was still there, this incredibly strength, that well of energy within the Fenris that had drawn Ezra to Chris like a stupid little moth. He felt it curl around his very soul, giving him back his own strength, suffusing him with energy.

Alpha.

That's what an alpha was.

"Lay down. Let me see the wounds."

"I'm fine," he replied automatically.

Chris chuffed a little laugh. "Sure you are, Ezra. Sure you are."

There was no fighting Larabee on this. Not because he was currently physically stronger, but because of the pack leader asking. Not ordering; just asking.

So Ezra surrendered and lay back.

He suffered through the examination, felt strong fingers palpate the four long slashes that marred his skin. Two had opened slightly with the shift, but there was no blood, and it wasn't deep. Ezra barely twitched as he felt the caress, first analytical and distant, then a lot more personal.

"Closed skin, almost all knitted together," Chris murmured, stroking over the red marks. "No blood. Scars will stay, I guess."

Ezra's green eyes were clearer than ever, watching him, and finally he caught the hand running over the sensitive area.

"I don't mind scars," he replied softly.

"Have to treat them again."

Ezra sighed, knowing it would sting when the antiseptic touched the small tears. And it did sting, but he swallowed a curse as his muscles cramped at the pain, reminding him just how deep the injury had gone and how much damage had been done.

Chris leaned over him, then their lips met in a slow, deep kiss. "How's the pain?"

Ezra gave a breathy laugh. "You're asking that after such a kiss?"

"Have to make sure. So?"

"I'm fine."

"Translation: you're in pain and won't tell me."

"Chris…"

"The truth, Ez."

He closed his eyes for a long second. Chris waited, still perched over him.

"I'm good, Chris," the crossbreed finally said. "It hurts, but not as badly as before. Muscles pull. Still growing together."

Chris placed an affectionate kiss on his forehead. "Thank you," he said softly.

The truth. Absolute truth. Ezra always had to remind himself of his promise, that he had given his oath to this compelling man, that he had entrusted himself to him and the pack.

Calloused hands ran over the marks, soothing, far from arousing, and Ezra relaxed into the repetitive motion. The caresses were calming and teasing in one. Making him crazy and still turning him into a puddle of goo. He felt himself exhale, the tension draining slowly, and finally there was just the warmth, Chris' presence, the touch, and nothing else. Even the category five was forgotten. He drifted in and out, aware of the long-limbed, warm and naked man next to him, but even more aware of the openness between them.

Far more than the pack bond.

So much more.

XxXxXx

They talked about a lot. Chris spoke more than he was used to. About himself, about his life before Four Corners, about Sarah and Adam. He gave back the trust Ezra placed into him by answering all those intimate questions. He hadn't kept his past a secret, but it was hard to talk about the loss, the pain, the darkness that came afterwards.

And Ezra slowly but openly gave him little insights into his past. Not just regaling tales of cons and wild gambles.

Private things.

Personal.

Shocking, too.

And some had Chris want to maim and kill.

XxXxXx

"I was a business transaction."

Chris gazed at the other shifter, taking in the tension in the compact frame, the tight jaw. "Come again?"

"My mother… she got me as part of a business transaction. She always told me she had me, but never in a way that spoke of… a man and a woman sharing a moment. I didn't understand the truth until much later. She never conceived and gave birth to me," he said clinically. "She found what she needed: a child for her cons. She was ecstatic to find she had more than just that. She had a crossbreed."

"She adopted you?"

There was a short, sharp, very brittle laugh.

"She bought me. I'm a crossbreed, remember? You don't adopt something unnatural."

Chris bared his teeth in a very wolfish manner. Ezra ignored the frightening display and just continued.

"Quite apparently my birth parents weren't happy when they found out that their offspring is an aberration. I'm lucky they didn't just…" The pain came back tenfold. "They sold me off. Made money of what they didn't want. Maude was interested. She wanted something special, something to groom for her purpose."

Ezra knew his voice had dropped to a bland, very level tone, trying to hide the pain and the disappointment. He still felt it; after all those years of knowing his true origin.

Chris' body was so tense, radiating a suppressed anger that had the other man shiver, he was close to snapping. His hands were clenched into tight fists, his face a mask of fury.

"I don't remember anything of my so-called parents. Maude raised me to run her cons. Who would think that the poodle she had on her lap was a shifter? Who would suspect the little doggy when the thief had had wings and a beak? Or slithered away?"

Lord, he sounded bitter. But that had been his life. Even if someone had suspected Ezra of being a shifter, he had made sure that the form he used wasn't the one Maude had been seen with. And she had loved showing off with purebred, expensive and even rare dogs at her side. First the cute puppies, then the grown versions.

Ezra had hated it.

He had absolutely despised it. The collar, the petting, the food bowls on the floor.

It had been a con, but it had been humiliation, too.

Maude had made him go through various forms, choosing what he was supposed to be. She had made him shift and adjust until she was pleased with the results.

All that broke out of him, the pain and degradation, the way she had never been more than the person who had fed him because he was a tool; useful.

Chris' eyes burned yellow, had that otherworldly sheen, and he was radiating danger that would have sent grown men into hiding with a whimper and wet pants. Ezra had seen that very look before. Something inside of Larabee was close to breaking free, disbelief and anger fighting for dominance.

"I ran when I could. I couldn't do it anymore. Ended up here. Got a job." He gave a humorless laugh. "Anything was better than this… acting career. Even becoming the law that I had run from so often before."

Chris still said nothing, looking at the other man with an intensity that was almost frightening. His face was without emotions, but his eyes burned. Even without his habitual black clothing style he looked like an avenging angel. Both were dressed in the emergency clothes from the wardrobe. Bland, wide shirts and too big pants. Ezra's shirt hung open to give easier access to the healing cuts. Right now he was playing with the hem of it.

"Maude isn't your birth mother," Chris repeated tonelessly, like he was filing away that information with everything else he had been told.

"She… was the one who raised me and taught me my trade." He sounded strained.

Family was an alien concept to him. Neglect, abandonment, being used… yes. Family had been that for him for a very long time.

Larabee settled down next to him. "Not your birth mother," he repeated coldly. "Which excludes her from the pack." There was a constant glow in his eyes now. "She won't be so lucky next time she shows up in my Territory."

Ezra blinked, slightly dumbfound.

"She claimed familial bonds last time. She won't be so lucky the next."

"Chris…" There was a waver in his voice.

The yellow flared briefly. It was rather shocking to have such a powerful burst of wolf in human eyes. And the wolf was hunting and ready for a kill.

"She can't claim you from me," Larabee stated, a cold edge to his voice. "Ever."

"She wouldn't…"

"She did, Ezra. Last time. She tried to break you from the pack and she claimed family! I won't let her do it the next!"

A vicious snarl tore from Chris' lips, but he was fighting down the more violent response. His eyes held an unnatural shade of burned gold.

"Oh dear lord," the crossbreed murmured.

"Damn right!" was the angry reply. Chris stared at him with those intense, inhuman eyes. "You are my pack and I claim you! I would say it to her face as your birth mother and I would win, but she isn't! She has no power over you!"

 _No_ , Ezra thought faintly. _Only you have._

It was a realization that caught him unawares, left him reeling and kind of breathless. For a single second he felt his brain stall, trying to reboot with so much information overwhelming him. Something jittered through him, something that was as unhealthy as it was enticing.

Chris had claimed him. He was of the Larabee pack, one of the Seven, belonging only to Chris. It was a claim that went deeper than mere association. It was something he had tried not to think about in the last two years of a regulator in the Four Corners Territory.

The alpha was like a solid rock in a turbulent sea. He radiated a calmness, a strength that Ezra found he needed.

The golden-yellow eyes flared, the intensity terrifying and beautiful in one. They were fixed on him with a brief intensity that seemed to scan him right down to his soul, stripping him bare.

Lethal but oh-so desirable.

Chris had settled over him, one hand running ever so gently over the four long scars, having Ezra shiver. He was watching him with sudden, intense and single-minded attention. The kiss was far from unexpected, Larabee surging forward and pushing home the fact of where Ezra's place was.

::With me. Only me::

It was a growl that shivered down Ezra's spine. The voice was deep, resonating inside his head, the timbre more gravelly than when Chris was human, and Ezra almost forgot to breathe. That voice and the physical contact were overpowering. It was touching something inside his very soul.

::You're mine, Ez! I won't let anyone take you! Ever!::

Ezra was by now flat on his back, feeling the rush of the words shoot through him, a whine escaping his throat. A throat that was attacked by Chris' blunt, human teeth.

"Oh gawd, Chris," he managed.

Searching fingers trailed over the marks, then over the straining crotch, squeezing. Ezra felt his breath stutter, still healing muscles clench, but he ignored the stabs of pain because the pleasure was far outranking that.

When Chris opened the pants and grabbed his straining shaft, Ezra groaned, eyes closed, head thrown back. The groan turned into something more primal when a hot, wet mouth descended over him.

It was over too quickly.

Helped along by his own desire, by Chris' impatience, his hard and fast pace that had Ezra reel from the possessive, claiming, but also so soft and gentle emotions. He came so hard, the pain in his side was almost enough to blank out the pleasure. But only almost.

Damn muscles were needed for even that!

He felt Chris' triumph over tearing such a powerful release out of him, then a hard shaft rubbed against his own still not completely flagging erection and he whimpered in realization.

The heavy rutting pace had him half-heartedly spurt a second time as Chris came with a guttural moan, face buried against Ezra's neck. Standish wrapped weak arms around the heaving shoulders, felt gusts of breaths dampen his skin.

::Mine:: Chris whispered, sounding raw.

::Chris…::

The eerie glow to his eyes faded. Emotions lay thick between them. ::Mate:: Larabee managed through the rawness.

Ezra swallowed, stunned. It had always been between them, never spoken about, never mentioned, even in passing, though the other five knew. Now Chris had said the word.

Mate.

Chris' mate. The pack leader's.

The kiss was gentle, soft, the alpha moving against him in a way that could go either way, though Ezra doubted he could get it up again. He wasn't up to his full strength. He felt weaker than ever before after a sexual encounter, and they had had wilder romps in the past.

::Yours:: Ezra simply repeated, threading his fingers into the dark blond strands.

There was no sound but the other man's soft breaths for a long time.

"Sorry," Larabee murmured after a moment. "Sorry, sorry, sorry."

"For giving me an orgasm?" Ezra teased, laughter in his voice.

He gave a breathy laugh. "No. The pain. You're injured."

"I'm fine." It got him a glare and Ezra brushed gentle fingers along one temple. "I am. I'm not bleeding, Chris."

Chris slid slightly off him, taking his weight off the still recovering man, but he curled into the uninjured side, seeking as much physical contact as he could. Ezra didn't mind. Not at all. His whole body seemed to thrum along each pint of contact, seeking Chris out in turn.

It hadn't even been this intense throughout their first time. Neither had been new to a male partner, but still they had tested the waters, how far they could go, and Chris had been far from the powerful, overwhelming, demanding alpha many would have seen him as.

That tenderness had nearly broken Ezra back then.

It had broken him now. Was always breaking him again and again.

One broad hand stroked over the newly formed scars, then finally rested over them like a protective shield.

He loved this man, Ezra mused, mind turning over the word in an almost lazy way. Had loved him for a while now.

A thumb brushed over a slightly bigger scar ridge and he dug his fingers into the unruly blond strands. Chris' eyes reflected nothing but peace, awareness, a kind of acceptance of everything Ezra P. Standish had ever been, was now and would ever be.

Yes, he loved him.

His greatest weakness and his sole strength.

Chris' lips curled into a gentle smile.

He knew.

Ezra leaned over him, kissing his hair. It was tender, loving… private. And incredibly intimate.

And he liked it. He wanted this. The casualness, the way they expressed themselves within the privacy of their rooms or Chris' cabin. Chris' caress was reassuring and warm. Simply _there_. It was a fact, like Chris Larabee was an unmovable fact in his life.

tbc...


	8. Chapter 8

When the weather front finally broke, both were in their shifter forms, though Ezra had hidden away the wings. Chris gave him an almost mournful look, the wolf sniffing briefly along the gray back. Ezra looked amused.

"Do you have a wing fetish, Mr. Larabee?"

It got him a dark chuckle. "When it comes to you…"

That voice. That expression. The eyes…

Oh lord, the man would be the death of him.

Both were outside, looking at the landscape that had been turned almost upside down by the power of nature. Ezra had been on enough patrols in the past two years to recognize the general area where he had crashed. Flute Canyon, a few dozen miles north of the Carlsson Ranch. Far enough away to be in absolute no-man's land, yet close enough to some sort of civilization that someone might have stumbled over him in the next few days. Well, Carlsson Ranch was the last outpost of civilization in Ezra's opinion. Sven Carlsson was a passionate cattle rancher, living so far into the Territory that he mostly had to ride to a broadcasting tower to get a decent radio signal. There was nothing past his land but wilderness where the Men of the Land roamed. Aside from Vin, no one actually went that deeply into the Territory on a regular basis.

It would take weeks for the forest to recover, but it was nothing nature couldn't handle. Nothing had remained of the winding, twisting path Chris had taken to the shelter. Everything had been either washed away or was blocked by fallen trees.

The sky was a mass of clouds, white and gray, some darker than others, that kept blocking the sun. Now and then it broke through, the landscape awash in gold. The wind freshened up at intervals, whenever the clouds hid the sun, and it didn't look promising.

Chris took the lead and Ezra followed, still feeling a little tender, but the stabbing pains were gone. He was not as agile as before, but more than a match for a wolf. He was strong enough to navigate the non-existent path with as much agility as anyone, paws never slipping. He was also too stubborn not to follow.

Larabee kept looking at him again and again.

::What?:: Ezra asked, hopping over broken trees.

::Nothing::

::Spill it, Larabee!:: he snapped in a for him rather uncommon emotional outbreak. Yes, he was still too far off-balance to draw up his usual armor of five dollar words and distraction.

Chris stopped, a calculating expression in his eyes. ::You said you didn't present yourself as a wolf because you thought I would see through it.::

Ezra tilted his head as he caught on to what his pack leader was asking of him in not so many words. It was an unspoken request, yes, but it was also a little push. He glanced around, listening to something that wasn't there: anyone else, a witness. Aside from assorted wildlife.

::We're alone, Ez::

He sighed, then initiated a shift from fox to wolf. An auburn wolf, about Buck's size, slender, with darker markings around his neck and back. The change came easily, barely pulling at his muscles, though he still felt the soreness. Anything larger than a wolf might be tricky. He would most definitely rip something if he attempted a horse, for example.

::I can adjust the color:: Ezra added hesitantly as he caught the yellow eyes, looking at him with single-minded attention.

When Chris didn't say anything, didn't even flick an ear, he did change the color to dark gray, leaving the markings. That got him a reaction, a soft growl of annoyance.

::Don't, Ezra. Your first choice is your natural choice::

::Uhm…:: he managed, then switched back to auburn.

Chris walked around him, clearly scenting him.

::Chris?:: he asked hesitantly.

There was a soft huff, then the huge black wolf stopped next to him. ::You feel like a true wolf::

::You say that now, but I doubt it would hold up inside your pack:: Ezra sat on his haunches.

::Not so good a con man after all?::

It got him an affronted look. ::I'll have you know, my dear sir, that I can pull off just about any shape perfectly."

"Just about any?" Chris teased, yellow eyes alight with amusement.

Ezra's expression grew from affronted to annoyed to testy. "I've not had much use for waterbound forms while in Four Corners. Or even before that. Any other shape you want to see?"

Chris nudged him gently. ::This isn't a test. I just wanted to see you as a wolf. I still prefer the fox. Your first form. With the wings. I like it a lot. It's natural::

Ezra shivered inside under the intense scrutiny. He was a good con. He could have been a wolf for a while, without slipping, but Ezra P. Standish was also a good people reader. His assessment of Chris Larabee in the first moment they had met had been on point. He wouldn't have been able to keep up the charade of being a wolf for too long. And if the pack had found out about his ruse, they would have found out about his true nature. Sure, he could have told them he was a triple changer, but even that would have been extremely risky.

He would have been under constant watch.

Larabee wouldn't have trusted him ever again.

Trust.

He relied so heavily on it now.

The Fenris nipped at one ear, bringing him out of his downward spiraling thoughts. ::Ezra:: he murmured.

The crossbreed shook himself.

::If you had seen through the deception:: he finally said, voice quiet, ::it would have… destroyed everything::

Chris regarded him, eyes solemn. There was as silent acknowledgement of the words, of the truth. Ezra couldn't give up what he had found. He finally tilted his head, silently prompting him.

The other man shifted once more; a red, wingless fox. He had no idea when the others would find them, because they would, and he wasn't ready to their reaction.

He had to do this at his own pace, even if Vin already knew.

Right now that pace was close to glacial.

Ezra met the knowing eyes of his alpha, a stubborn line forming around his eyes, daring the other man to say something.

Chris silently accepted his decision and they continued along the former path.

XxXxXxXxXxXx

A rain shower surprised them an hour into their trek toward the top of the canyon. Chris had found a rather good path and they were making fast progress. It wasn't the thunderous, relentless rain of the past days, but Chris sought out shelter under an overhang of rock nonetheless. Ezra shook himself, but there wasn't a single complaint leaving his lips.

They watched for ten minutes as the shower came down, the noise of rushing water, the humming drum against rock and leaves, soothing, almost meditative.

Chris let his eyes slide partially shut, senses alert for anything that might be a threat for them. Not much could threaten a Fenris, but he had an injured pack mate and Ezra, despite his claims that he was fine, wasn't; really.

The shower was over after no more than fifteen minutes and Chris took the lead again, making sure Ezra followed.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Vin met them halfway between the ERSS and where Ezra had run into the piss-pour drunk Josiah. Ezra felt like that had happened weeks ago, not just three days.

Vin stopped, tail easily balancing the lean frame on the log he had jumped on, and he rumbled a wordless question.

"We're good," Chris replied.

Vin looked at the fox. "Hey, Ez."

"Mr. Tanner," was the wary reply.

The tracker gave him a calm look. "It's Vin. Always was and always will be. Nothing has changed, Ezra. Knowing Chris, he pushed that into your head."

"Erm, yes, repeatedly."

"Doesn't seem to stick," Chris commented, pushing him along.

"You're not the first crossbreed I've met," Vin said as he easily fell in step with the two. "You know I spent time with the indigenous people of the Territory, the Men of the Land. That's where I met crossbreeds. No different."

Ezra didn't look at him, trotting next to Chris, who didn't comment. He just listened, eyes on the forest.

"For the Men of the Land, shifting is a gift. Being a multiple shifter is seen as special, as worthy. The land profits from their presence, the tribe or pack is honored to have them, that they chose to be with them."

Ezra refused to comment. No one had ever felt honored to know him and he doubted he would have been welcome anywhere if people had known who he truly was.

"You're still pack, Ez. Always will be."

Ezra had to swallow back a whine of relief, of need, at the words. It was an automatic reaction, shocking him a little bit. The pack connection had ruined him, he knew, had made him incapable of going on alone ever again. He was of the Larabee pack and always would be. Maude would have a conniption over this, declare him flawed and weak. Only a very tiny part of him even cared any more. Another was deeply entangled with these men and absolutely loyal to his alpha.

"Problems?" Chris asked, sounding business-like.

"Nothing we couldn't handle. Will take a while to clean up the mess the category five left in the outer Territory, but the town's mostly still in one piece."

"Good."

"Some mild injuries, no deaths as far as we heard."

Chris rumbled softly.

"Also had a flock of scientists coming in just before all hell broke loose."

The black ears flattened briefly. Larabee wasn't fond of such scientific excursions, but there was nothing any Territory could do about it. Usually they went away after a few weeks.

"Just about stopped them from going out in the storm," Vin continued, sounding amused. "They were dead set on getting data right in the thick of it. One got a concussion when he was tossed into the side of a building. The others are just bruised. They're still lurking around, trying to put together an excursion to collect whatever it is they are collecting. Something about measuring the change of the energy lines." He shook his head. "Idiots."

Ezra smirked. Scientists weren't known for giving up easily and some were rather stubborn when it came to explaining the Territories. Well, their problem, not the pack's. The regulators only had to go out when some of those idiots got themselves into trouble.

"The others are waiting for us," Vin added.

"Josiah?" the Fenris asked darkly.

"Nathan sobered him up. Took a while." Vin lithely jumped onto a huge, fallen tree, followed by Chris.

Ezra simply slipped underneath it.

"He say why?" Larabee snarled.

"Ran into some personal trouble, 's all he mentioned. As far as Nate understood, he got a letter and it was something to do with his father and sister." The blue cat eyes found Ezra's hooded green ones. "Wrong place, wrong time, Ez."

"I know it was nothing personal," he replied softly. "I have a great respect for Mr. Sanchez and I know he was troubled that day."

Like so many of them had issues and troubles, but so far getting drunk hadn't resulted in an attack on either of the group. Josiah had completely flipped, which meant he had looked deeply into more than one bottle. Or had mixed his liquors.

It had been Ezra's mistake that had gotten him injured. He should have left the other alone, not gone on some ill-perceived, pack-related intervention.

::Chris?:: Ezra asked carefully.

He got no reply, but the expression in the wolf's face wasn't promising. Well, it was. It promised punishment.

::I'm not pressing charges::

Chris stopped abruptly, a snarl of anger and disbelief ripping from his throat. His lips pulled back, revealing long, white teeth.

"What?!" he snapped.

"I'm not pressing charges," Ezra repeated calmly out loud.

Vin flicked an ear, looking almost amused. He sat down, watching.

"He attacked you, Ezra! He almost killed you!"

"I didn't die. Josiah wasn't in possession of all of his faculties. He apparently went through something personal and knowing him, he will punish himself the worst."

"He attacked one of the pack!" Larabee snapped, eyes glowing with an unholy fire. Fury flashed through him, hot and unrestrained, like a living thing with a mind of its own. "I am the pack leader! Alpha! No one attacks one of mine without consequences!"

Ezra looked at the wolf, holding the furious gaze. His own was unyielding. "I won't press charges, no matter what you say or do. It is within your right to draw the consequences of his actions concerning the pack, but you won't kick him out, nor will he be banned from any pack activities."

"You don't make the rules, Standish!"

"No, I don't," the fox agreed serenely. "I'm asking you to not act rashly. You are the team leader. This is your Territory. Josiah was in pain and he lashed out. It was my fault as much as it was his. I was a fool. I didn't judge the situation correctly."

The bared teeth were frightening, as was the low rumble coming continuously from deep within that maw.

"Chris."

"He nearly killed you, Ezra," was the harsh whisper.

"He didn't. I am still here."

"He took his personal issues, drowned them in alcohol, then attacked you!"

Ezra glanced at Vin, who had listened silently. "Mr. Tanner?"

The mountain lion tilted his head. "It's Chris' decision. He is the pack leader."

Chris huffed, shooting Ezra a pointed look. It wasn't as if that impressed the crossbreed. Never had before, didn't do so now.

"It is also my decision to accuse Mr. Sanchez of a wrong-doing. I won't. As I said, he will be his worst punisher." He flicked an ear. "No doubt he was already told what he did, am I correct?"

Vin smirked. "Right you are."

Chris huffed again, glaring.

"Josiah's been holing up in that little old church since Nathan got him stone-cold sober. He remembers some and I filled in the rest. He took apart that wall he rebuilt, which had Nathan patch up his hand."

Ezra gave Chris a pointed look, but the black wolf only continued glaring. ::The final decision is the pack leader's. You are the alpha:: Standish said, sounding unhurried, almost peaceful, as he acknowledged Chris' position. ::But Josiah is part of the Seven. We all failed before. Me more than he has, Chris. I betrayed your trust in the beginning and you gave me a chance, even though I nearly got all of you killed::

::You are my…:: Chris swallowed back another wave of fury and pain, which was clear for Ezra to feel and hear.

::Yes, I am. Now. Back then I wasn't. As such I ask for a voice. I ask to be his defender, not his accuser::

"Ezra," Chris growled out loud.

"It was his first misstep."

The wolf lowered his head, nudging the fox softly. "You drive a hard bargain."

Ezra smiled cheekily, then stepped back. Vin's rumbling laughter sounding almost like bad purring.

tbc...


	9. Chapter 9

When they finally ran into the others, Nathan was all over Ezra, asking him to shift and let him see the whole extent of the injuries in human form.

"I am not shifting in the middle of nowhere, making a spectacle of myself!" Ezra protested, glaring at the very much human medic.

Buck and JD were also not their lupine selves, grinning from ear to ear. They had taken horses to look for their missing pack mates. While people in the cities scoffed at using four-legged transport, calling it backwater and stupid, everyone who came into the Territories knew it was the only viable mode of transportation out here. The railways passed by between the protected areas. There were no roads for vehicles going deeper into the wilderness, and it was dangerously stupid to try.

A group of engineers had once tried out a new kind of vehicle that they had hoped was immune to the strange energies coursing through the land, but it had broken down no two miles outside town. Much to the townspeople's amusement.

The Territories had their own laws. Nature.

So horses it were.

"Good to see you're okay, Ez," Buck told him. "And we brought clothes; just in case." He nodded at the backpack he had carried.

Ezra quickly shifted and pulled on the clothes, which, while belonging to him, were not a matching set. He would never have chosen the ensemble, because seriously: a white dress shirt with worker's pants and boots, topped by a buckskin jacket? Where had they unearthed that jacket from anyway? Ezra hadn't been aware of still owning one. But right now he couldn't care less. The clothes were clean and they fit.

Nathan had watched the shift with a medic's eye, but Ezra shot him a warning look. The scars were plain to see, stretching over his ribs, bright and red, but there was no blood.

"I prefer not to have you poke and prod me for everyone to see. If it has to happen, I'm more than willing to wait for when we arrive home."

Nathan rolled his eyes. "Have it your way, but you will be poked and prodded, Ezra."

Chris huffed a laugh. He had found his own clothes among those brought for Ezra and had already dressed in his habitual black. Vin simply stayed his shifted form, ready to make a quick patrol before following them to town.

Both men mounted the extra horses and headed for Four Corners.

X x X xX x X xX x X xX x X xX x X x

Another rain shower hit them just before Four Corners came into sight. Ezra groaned silently and Chris shot him a sympathetic look. The damp clothes and the ordeal of the last three days combined together made for a miserable trip. The sky was different shades of gray, looking like a canvas of a color-blind artist.

The town was still standing. Sure, it had suffered. Chris could see where solar panels had been ripped off the roofs and the wind generators had been torn to pieces, but it was nothing they couldn't fix. The general store that boasted 'Potter's Hardware' over the entrance was already open for business, and they were very busy indeed. People were carting off whatever they needed for repairs. Chris felt a knot untangle inside of him that he hadn't been truly aware of. This was his town, under his protection, and he hadn't been here to do his job.

Glancing at Ezra, who was assessing the damage with quick eyes himself, Larabee knew he had been where he had been needed: with one of his men. His mate.

Still, he was a regulator, a peacekeeper, a lawman, too. As such he felt a pang of remorse that the others had had to deal with the storm damage on their own.

Mary Travis greeted him, looking relieved at seeing the leader of the Seven.

"Mr. Larabee. Are you alright? We were worried when we heard you had been caught by the storm…"

"I'm fine. Nothing happened we couldn't handle," he said, giving her a bland smile. "The town got hit harder."

Any interest in her had waned with time. Actually, after a rather short time. She had been a distraction in the beginning and later simply another one of the many citizens he protected.

"It wasn't the first storm of its kind to hit us."

"Neither was it mine." Chris raised an eyebrow, making his point.

While Mary might be attracted to him, he knew it wasn't a true kind of emotion. She was mourning her late husband, looking for someone to lean on, and Chris had come at the wrong time. She might be fascinated by his shifter side, but he had seen her wary looks when he was the wolf. The first time she had almost looked scared.

"The science team still here?" he asked neutrally.

"They have booked rooms in the hotel for another month," Mary answered before Buck could. As the local news reporter she knew just about anything that was happening in town. "They have been trying to find a guide into the Territory. I hear Mr. Tanner has opted out." A fine smile played around her lips. "Horace is currently in first place for that honor."

Chris almost laughed. Horace Lambert was a notoriously broke hunter/trapper who had no love for 'city slickers and the like' and usually gave those hiring him as a guide a run-around for a few days until they were tired and ready to get back to civilization. He was a damn good tracker, no doubt, and he knew what he was talking about. He had never lost anyone on the guided tours he led. He simply didn't like outsiders prancing around and thinking they knew the Territory better than people who had lived here all their adult lives.

"Well, good luck to them."

"He can use the money," she agreed. "And he knows a few scenic routes. Mr. Boyd is trying to land a job with them, too, supplying pack horses and mules. Their money is always welcome."

Chris chuckled. Of course it was. Tommy Boyd ran the local livery and stabled residents' horses. It was where the Seven's horses were stabled, too. He took excellent care of the animals, but he charged hefty sums when it came to inner Territory treks. Those scientists would have to pay them if they wanted good and reliable horses.

His eyes found Ezra, who was by now pushed toward the clinic by Nathan, more or less forcefully. He was being his contrary self, arguing he was fine, as usual. And Nathan was having none of it. As usual.

"Listen to the man," Chris called, feeling amusement at the antics, coupled with the knowledge that as long as Ezra complained, he truly was fine.

The look he got was murderous. Chris knew his crossbreed mate was fine, that what had remained of the terrible injury was healing fine. He was bruised down to the bone, sore and probably aching, but he was fine.

"Catch me up," he turned to Buck as the doors of the clinic closed behind the two men.

"You wanna do that with me first?" Wilmington waggled his eyebrows, lips twitching in a smirk.

"Later. The town's situation, aside from the science invasion, first."

Buck, knowing when play-time was over and the boss was in, nodded and did just that.

Mary let them walk away, her eyes following the slender, black-clad form, but she didn't attempt to follow. Chris wanted to see a friend in her and he had told her that he wasn't interested in a more personal, romantic relationship. Yes, in clear, open words. She had been disappointed, but she had accepted it.

And she hadn't tried again.

Chris wondered if she was aware of Ezra's position, of what the two men had been for each other in the past. If she hadn't been so far, she would be soon. Chris didn't intend to keep his mate a secret. Everyone in town knew who was who in the pack, that no man was simply tolerated. Ezra being the alpha's mate would be just another information to be filed away.

X x X xX x X xX x X xX x X xX x X x

Ezra was ushered into the medical clinic the moment they entered Four Corners, despite his protests and his express wish to at least have something real to eat and a drink.

"Later," was all Nathan said, voice stern and filled with command authority.

"Listen to the man," was all Chris added, eyes dancing, before he turned away to talk to Buck.

Ezra shot him a dark look, then the door closed and he was alone with their resident medic. The clinic was well-equipped, had the latest in Territory-functional equipment, and while Jackson didn't have a medical doctor attached to his name, he was certified. He wouldn't have been able to open a clinic or a practice anywhere in any city, but Four Corners hadn't been picky. It was hard to get a professional physician out here and everyone was glad it was Nathan Jackson, who was also one of the regulators.

A sudden wave of dread passed through Ezra and he almost stepped back when Nathan made an inviting gesture toward his examination table. He trusted the man. He had never not trusted him in his profession, but Ezra didn't like to be examined and he hated to take any kind of medication that might affect his sharp mind. Losing control was his greatest fear.

"Ezra," the not-quite-doctor said softly. "I'm aware of what happened and I know you were badly hurt. Just let me check the injuries, even if you already healed them. I'm not going to pump you full of pain meds or anesthetics. You know I won't. And I'm sure Chris took good care of you."

"He did," Standish said quietly, stillvisibly balking, but he shrugged out of the jacket and undid the shirt.

Nathan nodded his approval.

Shifters had a slightly off metabolism, especially in their alternate form. Doctors had to compensate for that when administering drugs, but also when it came to stitching or stapling a wound. Normally they could heal a lot on their own, without intervention.

"Everything else okay?"

He shot the medic a sharp look.

"Josiah's drunk rambling didn't make much sense, but since Vin's been behaving strangely, too, there's something."

He refused to be baited. Not here, not yet. It was all too much in such a short time.

"Vin said it's up to you. And Chris."

Still silence.

Dark eyes met green ones and he knew Nathan burned with curiosity, but he also gave Ezra the room to go either way: answer or remain silent.

Ezra remained silent.

"Alright, tell me when something hurts," Jackson turned back to his professional self when nothing else was forthcoming.

His touch was clinical, detached, completely professional, and he let him gently probe the scarred area. It was still tender, strained because of their ride home and the shift, but it hadn't broken open again. Ezra knew his muscles would need a lot more time to be back in shape. He felt it with each wrong move, how weak his side was.

Nathan asked a million questions, especially about the first shift to human after the injury, about dizzy spells, possible nausea and so on.

"I'm fine," he finally muttered. "Everything's just fine! No dizziness. Just a little muscle pull. Some mild headache. I've been injured before. I healed before. I'm really, really fine, Nathan."

Nathan met his eyes, as if he was trying to read something in the bland expression that Ezra was unable to hide. Finally he nodded.

"Yes, you probably are. What you need is some solid food and rest."

"I had three days of rest!"

"And still your body will need more. Shifter metabolism demands a lot of energy through recovery. Your body poured all its resources into taking care of those wounds as quickly as possible. You healed just as expected, the visible injuries gone, but inside your body will keep working. Eat, drink a lot of water, sleep."

It got him a grunt. He knew all that.

"And Chris helped in your speedy recovery," Jackson continued. Ezra tensed for a moment. "An alpha's presence always does when a pack mate is severely injured. It doesn't mean you're completely healed. Take it easy, Ezra, that's all I want. Try not to exhaust yourself or stress that area too much. I know we have a job, a job you do as well as all of us, but leave the heavy lifting to others for a few days."

"Yes, Dr. Jackson," was the grumble.

"Amuse those folks with card tricks or whatever."

He huffed at the implication of becoming an entertainer only and pulled his shirt back on. He really needed a shower, clothes of his own choosing, and the solid food Nathan had mentioned. A steak sounded like heaven right now.

"I take it the local watering hole is still operational."

Jackson chuckled. "Yes. And the restaurant."

"Good."

With that he quickly left the clinic, barely suppressing a sigh of relief.

X x X xX x X x

Nathan watched the door close and sighed. He picked up his tools and stowed them away, then briefly cleaned up. He knew something had happened. More than just a closer connection between Chris and Ezra, who had been close already.

Everyone knew they were mates, except for those two morons, he mused. Well, they knew, but they had never talked about it.

But something had changed. He had seen it in Chris' demeanor, the way Vin had behaved when he had returned just before all hell had broken loose.

Nathan would wait.

He could be a very patient man.

tbc...


	10. Chapter 10

Chris had been waiting for him to finish his physical and Ezra couldn't hide his relief when he left. Chris fell in step beside him, close enough for their clothes to brush against each other. There was a steady drizzle coming down.

"I'm fine, Chris," he said before the other man could ask.

"I know."

"Not that Dr. Jackson would have taken your word for it."

"Of course not."

"He told me to take it easy."

"Thought as much."

Ezra stopped, eyes roaming over the town. Rebuilding was already going on. "You want to tell them right away," he finally stated, sounding almost resigned.

"We'll be busy for a while. Got a bunch of visitors that might need assistance. Town's under repair, too. Better bring the pack up to speed."

"Before something slips?"

The hazel eyes filled with compassion. ::Ezra…::

Revealing his true nature to the rest of the pack was nothing Ezra had been looking forward to.

Vin joined them, a silent shadow coming seemingly out of nowhere, the blue eyes tracking between the two men. His brows rose, understanding reflecting on his features.

"Nathan give you a clean bill of health?" he asked out loud.

"More or less. He couldn't outright tell me I'm fine. That would be against his ethics or something." Ezra grimaced. "Eat, sleep, no heavy lifting. You know the drill."

Tanner chuckled. "Always the same. So, made up your mind?"

Ezra closed his eyes, the tension still running through him. He felt his shoulders and neck muscles lock up, a headache starting to creep up to settle down behind his eyes. Finally he had silently surrendered.

"If you truly want this to remain between the three of us…" Chris began.

"Four. I believe Josiah remembers seeing me with wings. And they are pack." Ezra bit his lip, feeling total off-kilter. "I trust them."

Vin squeezed his shoulder. "Yes, they are pack. Your pack. We'll all be on the same page. I'll tell them. You stay here, eat, rest. When you're ready…" Another squeeze, then he was gone.

Ezra scrubbed his hands over his face. Chris' presence increased, powerful and balancing, giving him something to lean on without physically touching him.

"Sorry," the crossbreed whispered.

The hand on his back was heavy and warm, grounding him. "Nothing to be sorry for, Ezra."

"It's hard to ignore one's upbringing…"

Chris pressed a kiss against one temple. "I know."

Ezra blinked at the open display of affection. Sure, there weren't so many people around in this weather. But still…

"Uhm, you should go with Vin. Handle the pack. Deal with whatever fallout there is."

"No fallout to handle."

Ezra still chewed on his lip. Finally he squared his shoulders.

"I have a meal to eat. Dr. Jackson's orders." He gave the other man a crooked smile. "Not going to cross him. I also desperately want a shower."

Larabee chuckled, then gave him a real kiss. "You do that."

Ezra stared after the departing man, refusing to call his current state 'shocked', but he was. Shocked by Chris' easy nature, how he didn't mind showing affection. The man who was normally harder to read than a rock was suddenly… human?

He gave a little laugh and shook his head.

Shower, food, he decided. Shower first. Always first.

Something else popped into his mind. Yeah, maybe food would have to wait, he decided. There was another, more pressing matter to attend to after he had cleaned himself up.

X x X xX x X xX x X xX x X xX x X x

Vin had gathered the other men and given them a brief explanation. The revelation about Ezra's true nature drew some surprise, but neither Buck nor Nathan looked like they would whip out a gun and go hunting their friend. Buck looked slightly mystified, then shrugged it off with an easy smile. Nathan's expression spoke of his medical curiosity, though he would be able to hold that in check. Ezra would run fast and hard if he so much as gave him the wrong impression of wanting to test him.

"What's a crossbreed?" JD wanted to know curiously.

"What do they teach you in school?" Buck grumbled, but his eyes were dancing with humor.

"Crossbreeds are shifters like you and me," Nathan explained, ignoring the other man's comment. "With one exception: they have more than one form."

"Like triples?"

"Tripleshifters are unusual, but accepted. They stay within the range of their first form. Like being able to be a wolf and a dog. Crossbreeds have no limit."

JD gaped. "No limit?"

"Theoretically no. And they don't have the limit within a form. They can sprout wings or gills on a landbound form."

Vin nodded slowly. "Ezra's fox form had wings."

"Holy shit…" the young wolf breathed. "Wow! That's fantastic!"

Nathan's smile was grim. "As fascinating as they sound, they are rare. Not because of the genetic trait that enables the shifts, but because they hide. Have to hide. Crossbreeds suffer from badmouthing, from witch hunts, from rumors and lies. A crossbreed would have been killed in some areas not so long ago, without question. Or incarcerated, if lucky. Since you can't keep them locked up due to their abilities, many so-called judges found it easier to kill them. Inside Territories jurisdiction is within the hands of the regulators. It's mostly safer."

"But why?" JD was visibly horrified. "What's so bad about being able to shift in so many forms? It's… it's their gift!"

Buck ruffled the younger man's hair. "Thank god for the new generations," he rumbled. "Generations before you have spread the rumors and lies about crossbreeds being impure, about them being an abomination of nature, a mutation that needs to be exterminated. You can't understand it, you can't shove it into a handy box, it's abnormal or vile or dangerous."

"So they just killed them!?"

"Like others hate snakes, for no other reason than the fact that they are not mammals or birds," Nathan said darkly. "I ran into people who despised waterbound shifters. I never understood their claims, couldn't wrap my head around it. For them it was clear as daylight that waterbounds were unnatural. But to be a crossbreed outweighs all of that even more. Across generations. Prejudice is everywhere, but wherever you go, crossbreeds are at the top of the list. Even the cities, though it's rare nowadays."

"And Ezra's one," Vin said evenly. "He's one of us and he's a crossbreed." His blue eyes were steely, holding a warning. "He's pack."

JD nodded vigorously. "Of course he is. He'll always be pack! Doesn't matter what else."

It got him a tiny smile. Nathan and Buck nodded grimly.

"Good to hear," a dark voice said, startling JD, who shot their pack leader a careful look.

Chris looked his imposing self, composed, dangerous, a true leader. His eyes, while all human, held an expression that was a clear warning. A dark promise that whoever hurt Ezra would answer to him and his justice.

"Of course Ezra is pack," JD reiterated. "Nothing has changed! He's the same guy we've known for two years now."

Vin exchanged a look with Chris, who relayed a lot with just his eyes sometimes. Like now.

"He's pack," he repeated. "'S all that matters. Anyone come here looking for trouble will know what pack means in this Territory."

The others nodded their agreement. Vin was confident that Ezra had nothing to fear and whoever came at him the wrong way, he had six others who stood by his side. Not to mention that crossing Chris Larabee was a dangerous thing to do. Or threaten his mate. Whether Ezra wanted it or not, it would get out throughout the Territory.

The land knew. He had felt the shift in the ley lines, in the nodes. The pack was stronger than before now, grounded in itself, the alpha's position unthreatened and powerful. Ezra had given back what Sarah's death had taken from the black wolf, and Chris was the undisputed leader of their team.

"Been to see Josiah yet?" Buck asked.

Chris looked like he had swallowed glass and his growled "No" sounded like it, too.

The alpha needed time, but he was their leader and he had to handle this. Ezra was healthy and whole, still a little banged up, sure, but otherwise perfectly fine considering what had happened. Nathan had inspected the healed wounds thoroughly and found they were coming along perfectly. Right now their crossbreed pack member was cleaning himself up and making himself presentable, as he had declared.

Vin knew he was stalling for time, putting up shields and masks. The pack would tear them down in time, but they would let Standish go at his own pace. Tanner would see to it, just like Chris.

"He's at the chapel," Nathan said calmly. "Had a bad few days."

Chris' expression said it all. He didn't care.

"Not yet, cowboy," Vin said softly, catching the taller man's attention. "You need some distance. No sense laying into him like that."

The expression grew even darker, more feral, but Chris simply stalked over to the sheriff station, probably to find something to take his mind off things until he was calm enough to look at the whole incident from a watcher's perspective. As pack alpha he had to distance himself, had to leave personal feelings aside, but Vin knew it would be hard.

Well, what was a second in command for? he mused. He would have his hands full.

As always.

Chris wasn't a violent man who gave in to his baser nature or wolf instincts. He had a sharp head on his shoulders, a quick mind, and he didn't lead through punishment and pain.

They would get over and through this, too.

tbc...


	11. Chapter 11

The hot shower did wonders. Ezra closed his eyes in bliss, felt his muscles unlock, a shiver running through him. He was so very glad that the generators were running, that water was heated and electricity was functional. The water sluiced off him, taking with it the smell of antibiotics and the basic cleaning products he had had to use in the ERSS. He could finally shave with his own razor, not a cheap replacement, and he felt so much better afterwards.

Clean, shaven, hair washed and dried, and fitting clothes he had selected himself. He had thrown on casual clothes, not his usual outfit, though. While even his casual clothes cost more than anyone else's whole outfit was secondary. It was simply Ezra. He liked dressing well. The clothes were also something of an armor, a way to distract from everything else, even if they sometimes drew attention.

Leaving his room, nodding a greeting at the citizens of Four Corners busily cleaning up their town, he headed over to the ruin of the ancient chapel just outside town, looking for the elusive seventh pack member. As he stepped onto the property, Ezra took in the neglected building that had been erected by one of the first brave settlers. It had fallen into decline when those people had left, the Territory too unforgiving, too unpredictable, their hopes crumbling like the walls of this little chapel, until nothing had remained but jagged teeth and wooden beams that were still rotting away.

It looked almost picturesque, strangely aesthetic, with its missing roof, the elegant archway that allowed entrance into the former building, and the afternoon sun coming through the only window still in existence, though the glass panes had broken and fallen out long ago.

The back had a single chamber that Josiah used to sleep in when he didn't want to return to town, but it was more than simplistic. An ancient garden lay next to the chapel, a few crippled trees all that remained of what must have been an orchard once. Everything was overgrown, a tangled mess of weeds and what might have been berry bushes.

Ezra wouldn't last a day out here if he didn't have to, without the amenities of modern civilization. Running water, power, access to warmth and food… No, he didn't like roughing it if he didn't have to. Ezra had been raised in the big cities, away from the Territories that were neither wilderness nor civilization. They were a frontier, a place where technology met nature, where Man was on his own, where people tried to make a new life. Maude had always eyed the Territories with disgust, seeing riper pickings in the cities. When Ezra had finally managed to separate himself from Maude Standish, he had chosen the one direction she might never follow.

She had tried.

Once.

Running into the immovable object that was Chris Larabee, who had had no tolerance for the con woman and her trickeries. It had been almost refreshing to see her off-balance for a while.

So here he was, stuck between two very different worlds, and very much at home. He wouldn't leave this Territory ever again. As long as the pack was here, as long as Chris was here, so would Ezra. And the pack needed to be together, whole and healthy. That meant Josiah, too.

"Mr. Sanchez?" he now called out, senses picking up tiny noises, barely perceptible shifts in the dark of the room.

He knew the man was here. Pack instinct told him. It also told him he was an idiot to confront the man out here, that it could turn out the same way as last time, but Ezra didn't plan on letting Chris get to Sanchez first.

It had been a mistake.

They had all made mistakes in the past, some less violent, some with a lot more consequences for the rest of them.

Squelching old guilt that he would always carry, he knew, Ezra settled down on the only wooden bench in the ruin.

"I'm not leaving," he said conversationally, aware that Josiah would be able to hear him.

"You should," came a rumble from the back chamber. "Go away."

There was no heat to it. Ezra heard only the pain and the guilt. Self-flagellation. He sighed.

"I don't hate you, Mr. Sanchez." He stopped. "Josiah," he corrected himself. "I made a mistake following you, aware you were inebriated. You were hardly the master of your own faculties."

"I attacked pack."

"You lashed out at whatever you saw that moment. I hardly think you wanted to hurt me." Ezra tilted his head, looking into the darkness in the back, seeing a shape move. "While I know I bring out the worst in many, I fail to believe you would resort to such violence. You are a man of words, Josiah, not claws."

"You don't know me, Ezra."

"I believe I do. We all know each other. We are pack. As much as it would have shocked me two years ago, maybe even have severely upset me a year later, I can't refute the evidence." Ezra smiled slightly. "I was overrun by this… sense of belonging, Mr. Sanchez. Being pack is something I… I'm not used to."

Josiah moved slowly into the light, the large figure hunched over. He was a pale shadow of himself, disheveled, eyes brimming with self-hatred.

"It means acceptance," Ezra went on. "Of ever member. As they are. Caring." He almost laughed bitterly. "Not something I was used to either. You made me see that it isn't bad."

"Pack doesn't attack pack."

He inclined his head. "That much is true. Pack also doesn't turn away from pack." Ezra swallowed back a surge of his own doubt. He had yet to meet the others under less dire circumstances. The others who now knew. Who might just do that; turn away.

"The alpha won't see it that way."

"He will. He might already do. We… talked. About a lot."

Josiah gazed at him, blinking almost owlishly. For someone who could be a menacing, hulking giant of a bear, he now looked more like a beaten stray about to lose his only home. It pained Ezra to see the otherwise so strong and sure man like that. He knew what making mistakes meant, to fear abandonment. It was something he had always been afraid when working with his mother: to disappoint her, to lose her respect, her love. It had only come later that the crossbreed had realized that whatever Maude felt for him, it wasn't love.

He pushed those particular thoughts away.

"The whole mess brought some… things to light that I had wanted to keep from all of you. I might have managed to do so for a little longer, but it came out now, at a most inopportune time."

The other man looked confused.

"One might say it revealed an obfuscation. Not a lie."

Josiah's eyes sharpened a little and he seemed to straighten more. "You never lie to Chris," was the calm statement.

"Yes. Like I never would lie to any single one of you outright. So you know that I do not lie when I say I won't press charges. There will be no consequences."

"Ezra…"

A raised hand stopped him. "I have kept things from you. We all do from each other, personal, private, intimate things. They tend to come out at times, under strenuous circumstances. About who one is." He inhaled deeply, ignoring the sore muscles still twinging a little. "Some people might see your attack on my person as… justified, knowing what I am, Mr. Sanchez."

"Wha…?"

He again raised a hand and silenced the bigger man. Drawing a deep breath, Ezra steadied his nerves.

"I am a crossbreed," he finally said, voice even, green eyes meeting blue ones. "The shifter form you know me isn't my first form either, nor my color. That's what I hid."

Josiah exhaled sharply. "The winged fox!" he managed, sitting down on a pile of rubble and sand like the shock had cut the strings that had kept him upright. "I didn't imagine it! It wasn't the alcohol!"

"No, my dear sir, it wasn't." Ezra looked at his clenched hands. "It was me. All me. My first and very much true form. It was my first shift, my true self. Wings on a land mammal. An aberration and abnormal."

"You are not an aberration!" Josiah pushed himself up, staggering over to him. "You have a gift! We all share a gift! You are Larabee pack!"

Ezra laughed a little. "My upbringing begs to differ."

It got him a very bear-like growl and Sanchez towered before him. Their eyes met and Ezra saw more clarity in them than before, an understanding, coupled with still-present guilt and shame, but also fierce protectiveness.

"You are not evil, son. You never were. You have an incredible gift."

"A curse."

"No," was the steady reply. "No curse. Nothing what we are is a cursed existence. People fear what is different. There is nothing to fear. You're not abnormal, Ezra."

"I didn't think acceptance was what I could expect."

Josiah studied him, then the unshaven features cracked into a knowing smile. "Forgiveness was something I couldn't expect."

Ezra looked at him, saw old pain, from far in the past and still so vivid and present even now. He held out a hand.

It was taken and he was suddenly pulled into a hug. A bear hug, so to speak. It didn't last long and his still sore side wasn't all too aggravated, but it cleared something important between them.

A sudden powerful surge had Ezra whirl around, placing himself almost unconsciously between Josiah and the alpha who was leaning against the empty archway.

Then again, maybe it wasn't such an unconscious move.

Chris, dressed in his habitual black, watched them from sharp eyes.

Wolf eyes.

Very yellow wolf eyes.

There were no imminent signs of attack, no aggression, nothing at all. He was as neutral as could be and still, it had Ezra on his toes and ready to intervene. He felt the wildness as sharply as he had back in the shelter. He could almost touch that energy, the Fenris, who was on the prowl.

 _Good lord_ , ran through his head as realization hit him. _He's posturing. Posturing!_

Green eyes narrowed dangerously as part of him took offense and decided to take charge to diffuse the situation before it could get ugly. He really didn't want to see a Fenris go at a bear of Josiah's size. Sanchez probably wouldn't shift anyway, not even to defend himself. The man was a close to twelve feet tall bear, but right now he looked barely his human size.

Ezra held the wolfish eyes, hands clenched at his side, shoulders squared. Facing off against the leader of the pack was never a wise move, but Ezra didn't give a damn about that right now. He had told Chris he would be Josiah's advocate and defense. He wouldn't let anyone judge the man on his drunken actions. He had been the one hurt; he would be the one to pass his own judgement, which he already had.

No, he wasn't Vin. He was very clear on his position, that he wasn't second to Chris, wasn't someone to sway the alpha from his course of action, but he would damn well make sure that nothing happened here today.

Josiah rose behind him, radiating no threat and no aggression. "Alpha," he rumbled before Ezra could get a word out.

Chris studied him. No muscle in his face moved. Then his eyes rested on the man in front of the bear shifter and his eyebrows rose a fraction. Ezra stared back defiantly, a stubborn set to his jaw, posture stiff and unyielding.

Not aggressive. Not submissive. Just… unyielding.

Silence stretched between them, the tension thick enough for even a non-shifter and non-pack to feel or almost see. Ezra refused to back down, holding his own against the Fenris, as he had done so often in the past years.

"Never again, Josiah," the pack leader finally said, voice gravelly, eyes still shifted.

"Never again," Sanchez promised hoarsely. It was like a solemn oath.

There was another long silence where Chris studied the other man. No judgement in his eyes, still not a muscle moving.

"You didn't recognize your own pack mate."

Josiah gave a soft groan. "I didn't." It was a broken-sounding confession, the guilt heavy in each word.

"Whatever demons you fought, they better be exorcized." There was a silent threat there, laced with a dark promise.

"They are."

Ezra was frozen to his spot, ready to launch into a long, harsh argument for Josiah, be the advocate and voice of reason for is alpha to understand, but finally Chris exhaled.

Josiah's tense frame relaxed and Ezra found himself mirroring it. A large hand squeezed the narrow shoulder of the crossbreed, relaying more than words, then Sanchez walked out into his unruly wilderness of a garden.

Ezra watched him, torn between following and leaving the man to decide for himself when it was time to rejoin the pack, partake in a few rounds of a game of cards, share something non-alcoholic for a while.

Josiah had made a mistake that had nearly killed one of their own. Ezra had forgiven him. He would make sure the others would, too. And that Josiah would be able to forgive himself in time.

Finally he left the ruin.

Outside, Chris was waiting.

A silent, lean, black figure, eyes hidden in the shadow of his hat.

Larabee fell in step beside him as Ezra headed back toward the town, toward where the rest of the pack was waiting.

"I had to do it," Ezra broke the silence between them as the only noise had been their boots on the hard-packed ground.

Chris said nothing.

"He exorcised a demon and found another one hovering right at his door step. He is pack, Chris."

"Wasn't your job."

"I beg to differ."

It got him a hard, penetrating look. "I'm still alpha."

Ezra stopped and met the shaded eyes, posture stiff. "And I would never challenge you for the position."

"Good."

"My decision had nothing to do with my perceived position within this pack," Ezra went on, voice slightly clipped, eyes harder. "I told you I would speak for Josiah if necessary. I simply decided to speak to him first. The man was tearing himself apart over this and it serves no purpose to let him suffer. As our illustrious leader you also wouldn't have done that, yes. But I'm not afraid of him now, nor will I ever be."

Chris studied him, face unreadable, then closed the distance between them, expression intense, serious.

"Your perceived position, Ezra?" he repeated slowly, each word measured.

Of all the things the man heard... Standish glared at him.

"You position is clear," Larabee went on, voice even.

"Not your second," he agreed coolly.

"Exactly."

Not his second-in-command. Something else. Something… someone else. The unspoken word hung between them and Ezra felt the powerful presence grow even more intense. A lot was said at the moment, just not in any words.

Not Chris Larabee's second-in-command, but someone equally important. With a different kind of power of command. Not that Ezra was trying to get any kind of leadership responsibilities.

"You also told him you are a crossbreed."

Ezra stood ramrod straight, jaws clenched. "Had to be done. Everyone else knows." The very words, out of his own mouth, sent a shiver through him.

Everyone else knew. And he would see those last two men he hadn't faced with that knowledge soon.

Ezra squared his shoulders unconsciously.

Chris met the determined gaze, a small smile forming on his lips. "You're not going to your own execution, Ezra."

"Feels like it."

"No one judges you."

"They always do," was the automatic, knee-jerk reply.

The blond shook his head with a low, kind of frustrated noise, then leaned in and angled his head enough to allow a brief brush of lips against lips.

Ezra blinked, slightly stunned by the very open display of affection again. Despite the past year, all the intimacy exchanged, they had never done anything publically. Not even in front of the pack. There had always been professional distance. The other five knew, but Chris had never seemed comfortable… and Ezra had seen no necessity to give anyone an insight into his personal life.

"Uhm," he managed.

"Something wrong?"

"Uhm. No. Not at all." Great. He was losing all ability to string real words into full sentences.

"C'mon," Chris coaxed and gave him a little shove. "They are your friends. Pack."

And he went. To face the curious looks and questions.

tbc...


	12. Chapter 12

Ezra had no idea what he had expected, but the shoulder slaps and manly hugs from Buck hadn't been it. There had been no curious questions, no interrogation into his true nature. Not even Nathan had cornered him into showing him his winged form, or anything else.

Like multiple shifts.

Which Ezra could do.

He was proud of the fact that he could become whatever he needed to be within a second, going through animal shapes at a whim. It was how he had pulled off many impossible cons in his shady past, and it was how he had equally pulled off impossible stunts throughout his law enforcement career.

Even JD, who was radiating nervous energy like a bouncing ball about to hit the walls, held back.

It was… weird.

It confused him.

And by Chris' amused expression, it showed.

Ezra shot his alpha a dark look, but it had Chris only smile more.

X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X

The whole pack shared dinner at Inez's that night.

One of the perks of being the regulators of Four Corners Territory was free meals, free board, and regular payments for other expenses. Chris normally lived at his cabin, Vin had a wagon he preferred to a room in a building, JD stayed in the tiny bachelor apartment above he sheriff station, just like Nathan had a room next to the clinic. Ezra had moved to Inez's saloon when she had added guest accommodations. His was the biggest, including an ensuite and a kitchenette, which he never used. He preferred to have his meals in the restaurant or the bar area. They never had to spend a lot, except on clothes, ammunition and whatever drew a fancy.

Ezra's pay was invested in his clothes; naturally. He couldn't compare what he received on a weekly basis with what he had made in his prior life. It was far, far below, but it was… enough. Strangely, it was enough.

JD loved acquiring new tech to test if it worked in a Territory environment, then fiddle with it long enough to actually make it work. Ezra actually joined him sometimes; well, often. He liked the challenge, he was always amused and strangely drawn to JD's enthusiasm, the way he wouldn't give up until something really worked to his satisfaction, and it had Ezra invest a lot of his free time in gadgeteering, as Buck good-naturedly called it, as well.

Vin's interest in weapons of all kinds had him spend some of his hard earned dollars on that. He had a regular magazine ordered through Potter's hardware, even bought rare or unique weaponry that cost a small fortune, and was a regular at the shooting range.

Buck, of course, wooed whoever caught his fancy. There had been a few more serious candidates, but somehow it never worked in a long shot. Significant others wouldn't become pack automatically. The pack was the Seven, the regulators, the law. It would never include anyone else.

Nathan gave up a lot of money to have new medical instruments or medications shipped that didn't make the official list on the required materials for a Territory clinic. Or things that weren't on the market since the cities required extensive testing and certificates before licensing a product. Nathan had a source, as he called it, never naming anyone, and Chris never asked.

Josiah had a standing account with Potter's hardware for materials needed for the chapel. Ezra knew some funds were given to people down on their luck, those who had tried to make a life out here and had been thwarted. Those waiting to either get a new foot down on the ground or who tried to scrounge up the money to go back home.

Right now, all seven were enjoying a good meal, exchanging information on how the town had fared, as well as the surrounding farms, whoever they had already heard of and who hadn't checked in. It was procedure and everyone was following it. Ezra had made sure to sit next to Josiah in a blatant declaration that he had no hard feelings, even if Sanchez looked like he expected to be on trial the moment he had sat down.

No one had mentioned the attack; no one treated Josiah any differently. Sanchez himself was a lot more quiet than usual, just nodding when it came to regulator matters.

Chris easily drew up a roster that had Ezra remain in town for the next two days and nights, coordinating matters from the sheriff's station.

Ezra's protest that he was good and could handle his share was silenced with a simple look. He turned back to his sandwich, radiating annoyance. Sure, he wasn't fully recovered and some movements did more than just twinge, but he wasn't an invalid!

"You're not useless," Chris said evenly. "I need someone I can depend on to handle the whole reconstruction. People will be asking for help, for supplies, for advice. We need to coordinate all of that. I've seen you pull some interesting stunts when it comes to acquiring what we need when we need it. I', counting on you doing that again."

Ezra felt part of him preen. Yes, he had channels and connections. He knew people. Some of them working a little bit left and right of the straight and narrow. Chris had never asked in the past, as long as it didn't come back to bite them.

So he grumbled a little, but he would do whatever it took.

X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X

The sky had darkened quickly as evening approached. He called it an early night, the events of the day – had he really just returned this morning? – catching up to him. Not even playing a game of cards sounded appealing to him.

Part of Ezra was still reeling with the easy acceptance the other six men had shown. Well, five. No, four. Chris and Vin had known already. No one had looked at him like he was pond scum, the dirt on their boots, lower than bottom rung. No one had silently threatened him; or actively.

This was new for him.

Absolutely new.

It left him in a state of unbalance and he hated it.

Ezra was drawn between doubting this was real, that the pack wouldn't turn on him the moment he relaxed his guard, and just doing that: accepting it and relaxing his guard.

He sighed softly.

His whole life had been spent hiding. He would still have to hide, trust that the others wouldn't spill his secret to anyone in the Territory, but it was easier now.

The street lights in their ornate lamps had flickered on, a reassurance that the main electricity lines were indeed unaffected and even without the missing wind generators and the torn off solar panels the town had enough energy to run the basic amenities.

Somehow he shouldn't have been surprised to find he already had company at his place.

"Mr. Larabee." The blond brows lowered into a scowl that had the crossbreed chuckle. "Chris," he corrected himself. "I thought you would be out and about, haunting the streets, looking for miscreants."

"Buck and Vin are on patrol tonight. Nathan told me to take it easy for today, that they had it covered, and to keep an eye on you." He raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not a child that needs watching!"

"Oh, really?" His eyes were crinkling with the amusement he felt.

Ezra slipped out of his jacket and kicked off his boots. Chris was already out of his clothes, gloriously naked and unashamedly on top of the covers. Ezra wondered if he would ever get enough of seeing the man like this, even if he had seen him repeatedly in the nude over the past months… year… and a lot of it just within the three days in the shelter station.

Shifters couldn't be shy about nudity because of their very nature. Clothes didn't shift with the body.

Still. This was Chris Larabee.

His mate.

The word was still new to him. He had to get used to thinking about them in these terms so openly. Away from the privacy of the ERSS.

The hazel eyes were suddenly ringed in gold and Ezra's breath caught. The proprietary thought must have someone been very easy to see or read.

He had no qualms about letting Chris pull him onto the bed and straddle him, kiss him with such hunger that it left the crossbreed tingling all over. He didn't really put up much of a struggle to give as good as he got. Hands raked over the slender, lithe form, leaving brief, reddish marks that had Chris growl in approval.

"Still think me staying with you is such a bad idea?" the Fenris murmured.

"Actually, no, not any more."

"Good."

X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X

Chris looked at his mate, took in the relaxed features as Ezra slept. He had watched him sleep a lot lately, mostly in his first form, but also as a human, and it amazed him again and again. Larabee knew that Ezra was still off balance from the changes, from having his secret revealed, and he wasn't fully trusting what had happened yet.

But he would learn, he knew. They wouldn't let him hide anymore. Vin had been quite open in his assessment that Ezra would still be cautious, would have doubts, might even pull away.

Chris wouldn't let it happen.

The pack was Ezra's protection, his safety and his security net. It would need time to get that into the crossbreed's head, but Chris knew the moment it settled, sank in, Ezra would relax into it.

His fingers found the four red scars again, tracing over them like they were a secret code only Chris could decipher. He splayed his hand over the marks and enjoyed the warmth underneath his hand, the rise and fall of his ribs as Ezra breathed.

Alive.

His.

He smiled and closed his eyes, his hand still covering the scars as he let sleep take him, Ezra by his side.

X XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX X

Buck had had morning patrol, had checked in at the sheriff station when he was back, exchanged a few words with JD, and had then headed over to the restaurant for an early lunch. He found Chris there, head bowed over what looked like a report, and he smirked. As much as Larabee projected the tough, no nonsense regulator, he took his duties seriously and his reports were always detailed and on time. He actually rode his team to finish theirs, wouldn't accept half-assed stories, and he personally kept track of whatever came in over the sheriff each evening.

Alpha.

Through and through.

The man knew what was happening in and around town, and not just by hearsay.

Buck took a seat at the back corner table and grinned at his best friend, unapologetic over disturbing the alpha.

"Back in the saddle?" he teased, nodding at the report.

"Must be done. Missed a few days."

"Nothing we couldn't handle. And with the black-out there was hardly anything coming in or going out."

"All the more reason to double-check now."

Four Corners wasn't a big town, but it had grown in the past two years the regulators had taken care of the place. Its size was regulated by the Protection Act. A main street, two more streets running parallel to that, a few alleys. The buildings that made up the town that had been named after the Territory were a maximum of two storeys in height and close to fifty percent were businesses. People lived on outlying farms and ranches. There were two horse breeders, some sheep and cow farms, one even trying himself at deer. The farmers were plenty, though some of the new-arrivals had given up after experiencing first-hand how unforgiving this place was. A woolen mill had set up shop in town and was rather successful, as was the butcher and general store, all handling only local product.

The science expedition had left this morning, Horace as their guide, and no one expected them back for the next month. With winter approaching they would be back before snowfall, most likely, unless the bailed it out of the wilderness earlier.

Buck silently ate his potatoes and stew. It was a damn good stew.

"So, you finally told him, hm?"

Chris looked up again, eyes narrowing briefly.

"Ezra. You told him. I can tell."

"You make no sense, Buck. As always."

He grinned widely, chewing. "Hey, we all knew about the two of you, right? Pack knows. And whoever had instincts knows. You finally gave him the words, too. Congrats."

"Buck?"

"Yes, old dog?"

Chris glowered at the tease. "Get out."

"Having lunch here."

"Then have it somewhere else," was the low, annoyed growl.

Buck placed the cutlery on the table, demeanor suddenly serious, and he met the narrowed eyes calmly.

"Chris. I've been your best friend since ever. I know your past, I know what happened, I know how it hurt you. I know you and Ezra found something together, that he is good for you. I was glad you had someone that way. Not just for a quick romp. You can pick anyone for that, but it was Ezra. You had his trust and you trusted him. Finding your mate in that person is special."

Chris' face was unreadable, but his eyes spoke volumes. There was a brief flash of wolf, but he had himself under control.

"You going anywhere with this?" he asked neutrally.

"Sarah was special," Wilmington went on, ignoring the question. "She always will be. So is Ezra. He is something different and he is good for you, in so many ways. He is pack, feels comfortable with us, and he belongs."

It got him a tiny nod.

"And you told him in words, right? Full sentences? 'Cause as good as sex is, and I like it a lot, it's not how you tell your mate he's your mate."

The glower was back.

"Hey!" Wilmington laughed. "Valid question when it comes to the old Larabee charm."

"Fine line, Buck. Very fine line."

"Words are important," the other man insisted.

"I talked," Chris finally ground out, the glare intensifying.

"About everything that's important?"

"Why are you suddenly so invested in what Ezra and I talked about, or not?"

Buck smirked. "'Cause it's been hard watching the two of you, knowing you both know and you never told him. Ezra needs words. He's like that. He thrives on it. You can't go around assuming everyone's a mind-reader like Sarah was."

"Thin ice," was the warning.

"And he's one of us. He needed to know that, too, and we had to tell him to make it stick. Being mates was something else that had to be said in words."

Chris blew out a breath, clearly aware that Buck wasn't going to stop talking about it.

"He knows, okay? We talked. Not just one word. Several. He knows. Changes nothing about the pack dynamics," the alpha added, almost like a warning.

Buck grinned. "Sure. Not like Ezra would want to. And it's not like we're typical pack anyway, seeing what you collected." He leaned forward, a devilish glint in his eyes. "Seeing who you are anyway, alpha. Whoever would've thought a Fenris can run a pack."

"Out," was the last warning.

Wilmington's shit-eating grin was unrepentant and he took his plate over to the counter, chuckling to himself.

He loved riling up Chris sometimes. He wasn't as good at it as Ezra was, never would be, but he knew some buttons. It did his oldest friend a world of good. And knowing that those two hard-heads had finally gotten everything out in the open was a relief. Almost like a weight off the pack's shoulders.

With a spring in his step he left the establishment and headed over to the sheriff station to relief JD for his own lunch break.

tbc...


	13. Chapter 13

"You can ask," Ezra told JD as he and their young sheriff headed for a patrol to check on how the outer homesteads were faring by now.

The weather was brilliant today, the sun shining down on the ravaged land, with clouds chasing over the sky since it was still gusty. Ezra had had enough of sitting in town and when the young sheriff had headed out, he had come along. While Ezra could while away the hours reading a good book, enjoying the sun, or play cards with whoever wanted to lose a little money to him, he also enjoyed a ride, talking to whoever was home on the farms they visited.

Also, riding didn't count as heavy lifting in his vocabulary, so Nathan couldn't have his hide over disobeying orders. Chris had only raised his eyebrow without a verbal comment, which was blessing enough.

So now he was here with JD.

"You wouldn't mind?" the younger man asked.

"No."

JD was silent, gazing at the neck of his horse as they made their slow, steady way along the torn river banks. The river had swept away most of what had been there, leaving mud and debris behind. A bridge had been torn down and was now in shambles several miles downriver. Another had suffered greatly. Rebuilding would take a while and crossing the river was dangerous at the moment.

"I read up on crossbreeds," Dunne finally said. "Because I don't understand what's supposed to be evil or abnormal about it. I mean, triple-changers are accepted. Why not multiple changers?"

Ezra was silent, surprised that his young pack mate had turned to books.

"I read a lot of horrible stuff. Makes you want to throw up. It was like a witch hunt back then."

"Not just back then," he added quietly. "It still is now. Some Territories are safe, others not so much. You can never tell in any town or with any person."

JD looked pained. "I know. Some places are still rather... extreme about it."

Ezra chuckled. "You could say that. Doesn't matter whether it's a city, a town or some rancher in the middle of nowhere."

He had been to enough places to know. He had hidden too often, scared for his life, ready to run far and hard.

"But it's getting better."

"Maybe."

"You never trusted anyone with this, right?"

"No."

"Not even Chris?"

"Not even my alpha." Ezra felt a twang of guilt at the thought.

"But he's your mate!"

Standish gave him a perplexed, slightly stunned look. JD rolled his eyes.

"Please! We all knew it was more than just… well…"

"Sex? Stress relief? Pack mates with benefits?"

It got him a glare. "Well, I knew it was more than any of that. Or whatever. No idea why Buck thought he had to be so embarrassed about it when I asked. I'm not a kid! I know about pack matters and mates!"

"Yes, you do," Ezra agreed quietly.

"So you are mates. You're the alpha's mate, Ezra. You could have trusted him."

"I trust him, JD. More than I ever trusted anyone else in my life, and that means more than just words. I trust the pack." He sighed softly. "It's not easy. It never was. You made it as easy as you made it difficult for me. The concept of trusting people… with my life, my money, everything about me… it's rather new. I didn't trust anyone like that, like you, before… well, before you." Ezra gave a little shrug. "You did your darnest to include me, to make me more than a mere acquaintance who might just bail after his year of penance service was up."

"It wasn't like that," JD muttered.

Ezra chuckled. "No, not really. In the beginning maybe. The Judge… gave me options. I took the more appealing."

"Prison isn't fun," the sheriff agreed with an amused tone to his voice.

"No, it isn't. And Travis knows I could get out, would get out." He let his eyes sweep over the horizon. "But to reveal I'm a crossbreed… that was more than just trust. It's my life, my survival."

"Chris wouldn't… he wouldn't have hurt you, Ezra."

It was the same argument from the shelter all over again just with another pack member.

"We wouldn't have done anything either," JD insisted. "You're pack!"

And it meant more to a wolf than to a cougar, a bear or a fox. Wolves were pack animals. It was instinctual. Like Buck had taken JD under his wings, taught him, protected him. Like Chris was watching over everyone, not just because he was the pack leader. Wolves tended to drift together, to form family structures, to have friends. Ezra had never felt that notion, but now, after all that time, he knew what it meant. And he didn't want to miss it ever again.

"I come to understand that now," he said softly. "It's a new concept. I have to get used to it. My life was very different up until two years ago." He self-deprecating smile accompanied the words.

"As was mine," the sheriff told him firmly. "As was Vin's and Buck's and everyone's!"

"Yes."

They rode in silence for a while, the river gurgling wildly alongside breaking the otherwise quietness of the land. Ezra let his eyes roam over the scarred landscape where the storm had uprooted trees and flattened bushes.

"How do you do it?" JD asked after a while.

He raised an eyebrow.

"Shifting to another form."

"I just do. Like you shift into our wolf form."

"You think of what you want to be? You have to see it first to know what to look like?"

Ezra smiled a little at the burning curiosity behind the words. "I can, simple as that. I never thought about the how and why. It's a skill I have and I used it."

"Huh. It sounds cool." JD looked truly fascinated by the concept. "And you can add things the original shape doesn't have? Like the wings?"

"Theoretically yes, but it was never necessary to fly as a wolf, a dog, a horse… and it would draw attention."

"But you flew as a fox."

"It's my first form, my natural shape."

JD silently contemplated that, then nodded. "Would you… show us one day?" he finally asked.

Ezra tensed a little.

"Not now!" JD added quickly. "I know it's new for you and all of us, but maybe one day…?"

Maybe one day, Ezra thought. The memories of his mother, how she had used him like just another tool at her disposal, a show pony, were too vivid on his mind.

But JD was not her. Nor was anyone else. All his shifts in the past had been to help with a mission, to get him in and out of somewhere, and they had been voluntary, though none of his pack mates had witnessed any of that. These were the men he trusted. They didn't abuse his abilities; never had.

Ezra nodded slowly.

The nod was enough for his companion and JD gave him a real, open, very happy smile.

They continued on their patrol, passing by several farms where people were cleaning up, rebuilding what had been destroyed, and both men talked amicably with the farmers or homeowners. Crops had been ruined, roofs lifted and blown away, barns flattened, but no lives had been lost. The people who lived out here, away from the cities, abiding the Territory laws and the Protection Act, were a hard bunch. They were hard to keep down after such an event and many had lived through a category five before.

Ezra felt their unbroken spirit and strength inspiring. Not many stayed out here after living through nature's forces. A few couldn't handle the Protection Act's restrictive nature, but those were truly few. Everyone who was allowed to settle in a Territory knew what they were getting themselves into.

JD and Ezra talked to the home owners, the farmer and ranchers, listened to how the storm had hit, asked if they needed help.

One couple invited them for a quick lunch, the next offered lemonades. They politely accepted, though they didn't stay long. Just dropping in, showing that the regulators were keeping an eye on their Territory, was enough for these people.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Both men returned after nightfall and left their mounts in the capable hands of the livery employees. JD headed for the sheriff station to catch up on what might have happened, write his report on their patrol. Ezra veered off toward the saloon.

He found Nathan and Josiah there, involved in what seemed like a spirited discussion over whatever had been in the newspaper, it seemed. On closer inspection it was the monthly crossword puzzle, which spread over two pages and was usually quite challenging. Buck was flirting with Inez, who good-naturedly let him employ his arsenal of charm and what he called animal magnetism. Not that it ever worked, but it was a game both liked to play. Vin was probably already off on night patrol.

And Chris… Ezra located the pack alpha unerringly, sitting in a corner and surveying the crowd, keeping an eye on matters in a very covert way. He was blending in, all in black, but his presence couldn't be overlooked. Everyone was aware that Larabee was here. While the crowd was their usual loud selves, there was hardly more than a scuffle here or there. Most were ranch or farm hands, and some of the construction crews handling the downed towers.

Ezra grabbed a fruity drink, adhering to Nathan's stern advice to lay off the alcohol for now, and joined the dark-clad man.

"A rather uneventful patrol," he said as he settled down, answering the unspoken question that had only been relayed by raised eyebrows. "We encountered the expected damage. Bridges are still down. Might take a while to get them rebuilt. We talked to the Karls, the Grayssons, the McKays and Herb Donner. They are all in good spirits. No physicals injuries but a few scrapes and bruises. No one asked for specific help."

Chris nodded, sipping at what Ezra identified as coffee. They spent the next minutes in companionable silence, Ezra relaxing in the powerful presence. JD came in not much later, ravenously hungry and ordering dinner, then joining the others.

Josiah left to pick up his own patrol, joined by Buck. Chris was still silent, missing nothing, as his men, his pack, went about their scheduled routines, had dinner, laughed together, exchanged stories, then left to sleep or pick up their duties.

Nothing unusual.

Ezra took out a pack of cards and shuffled them expertly, fingers nimble and quick. Chris' eyes strayed to the card play and Ezra gave him an inviting smile.

He got a smirk and a quick shake of the blond head. The crossbreed replied with a shrug and continued his display of dexterity. He finally spread the cards for a few rounds of solitaire.

As the evening crowd dispersed and Inez cleaned up, Larabee rose, all power and grace, and Ezra followed him silently.

"Feel like a night run?"

Ezra gazed into the dark streets. It was rather cold tonight, heralding the approaching change of seasons. His breath clouded in front of his face. But a night run sent a strange thrill through him. Still, contrary to his last breath, he scowled.

"On four paws?" he asked, putting as much disdain and doubt into the words as he could.

Chris raised his brows. The man could have whole conversations with just his eyes and eyebrows.

Ezra shifted on the balls of his feet, feeling strangely hesitant. He had spent three whole days as a fox; more time than all the other times added together of the past two years. It should have been enough, but ever since… since the truth had come out, he had felt more adventurous. He had never known how much shifting meant to him.

"How… uncivilized," he quipped, using his usual self-defense.

Chris grinned, still looking at him like no more words were needed.

And they weren't, because the alpha didn't have to say a lot. Chris also probably saw the spark of excitement in his mate anyway.

"You are bad for me," Ezra muttered.

The glint was hard to ignore.

XxXxXx

So he followed Larabee, feeling strangely liberated in his four-legged fox form. The dense fur didn't let any cold through and his body was fully healed. Instinctively he had chosen red, even if Chris had shot him a scowl.

To the town he was a red fox.

Within the privacy of a pack outing he might just show his true colors.

Ezra almost laughed.

True colors. Right.

Strong jaws with sharp teeth snapped at him, had him dance out of the way with real laughter, then he whisked through the streets, the wolf hot on his tail.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Ezra flopped down on his belly, then rolled on his back, tongue lolling, feeling strangely playful and free after the chase. A large, black muzzle pushed into the soft fur, teeth nipping at his belly, and he batted at it with his paws, laughing.

Chris snorted and caught one paw with gentle teeth. He was looming over the fox, eyes aglow with the same excitement Ezra had felt. He finally released the unharmed paw and settled next to the smaller shifter.

Ezra just watched him, grinning, batting at the other's head.

::For someone who thinks four paws are uncivilized, you are a giant tease, Ezra Standish::

::You bring out the worst in me, Chris Larabee::

Chris licked a wet stripe along his face. ::I try:: he purred.

Ezra rolled around and curled into his alpha with a contented sigh. ::The worst:: he muttered, pushing his nose into the thick neck ruff, just like he had done at the shelter. It felt absolutely normal. And he truly enjoyed it. ::Three days more fox than human and look at me::

::Hm, I like looking at you. Just like you are. Well, mostly.::

Ezra raised his head and stared at the Fenris. ::Excuse me?::

::Red. You're not red, Ez.::

He huffed. ::I can be whatever I want::

::But you are gray:: Chris' gaze was intense and without compromise.

::Yes, we established that::

Yellow eyes looked at him, the Fenris silent, and Ezra finally relented. It wasn't because Chris looked at him with puppy eyes; he would probably have laughed his tail off if the other shifter ever tried that. It was something else, something more intimate, something just between them.

The red became light gray.

He didn't dare show his wings because just about anyone might see them. It wasn't private enough. It wasn't safe.

It got him a nibbled-at ear that was bathed in a big tongue afterwards. Chris rested his head on the smaller shifter's back, totally at ease.

Ezra relaxed as well, burying his head against Chris' thick fur.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

They stayed like that until dawn.

A thick fog had come in throughout the early hours of the morning, blanketing the town and everything around it in a fluffy, dense and rather surreal cloud. Things disappeared after just a few feet, shrouded in a fine cover that clung damply to Ezra's fur and making him absolutely invisible.

Chris, his dark form next to the fox, was equally barely recognizable. Ezra enjoyed the atmosphere, the strangely dampened sounds, the cool but still rather mild air. People were either already waking up or just about going home, and no one really saw the two shifters moving noiselessly through the fog.

XxXxXx

Chris slipped into bed next to Ezra, who was pleasantly worn out and ready to sleep until noon.

tbc...


	14. Chapter 14

Close to two weeks had passed since Josiah's drunken attack on Ezra. Close to two weeks since the storm and the destruction it had left behind. People were still busy rebuilding, helping each other, waiting patiently and sometimes not so patiently for supplies. Outside help wasn't expected. The Territories were mostly on their own and support only happened when requests were made.

Chris had talked to the mayor and the council of Four Corners, which sounded more pompous than it really was. Being a mayor or a councilperson was a loose job description. It meant they were the three persons the townspeople went to when something didn't run smoothly, but none of them handled criminal matters or the law. That was Chris' area of expertise. Now, after the storm, the regulators and the council worked together to insure everyone was getting through the rebuilding. They took stock of how much crops and livestock had been damaged or destroyed. And Chris had everyone on alert when it came to travelling salesmen and whoever else suddenly popped up and tried to part the hard working people from their money.

Construction crews had been deployed to repair downed towers. They were local. They knew their way around and wouldn't get lost in this land. Anyone not from the Territory was immediately a person of interest, though.

Ezra had found himself busy coordinating the efforts, immersing himself completely in sending aid, taking care of incoming requests, shipments, and work forces. Together with Buck and Josiah he quickly weeded out the unsavory characters, out to make a quick buck or ten by offering outrageously priced services.

Ezra was a pro in that regard. Fooling him was hard. He could spot them a mile away. Josiah easily complimented them out of town and Buck made sure they stayed away, too.

Four Corners was running smoothly, the stores were open, the businesses operational, and those who had lost their homes for the time being had either found shelter with neighbors or in the local hotel. Ezra had made a deal with the proprietor, securing incredibly good rates and meal deals.

The science expedition had already returned, looking a little disgruntled. Ezra had smoothly inquired as to their success, offering a round of hot beverages to the men and women as they had looked like they needed that. The team leader, Dr. Dr. Martin Dean, had accepted the offer and Ezra had spent two informative hours with the scientists, listening to their woes and small successes.

Apparently the ley lines were brimming with energy, shorting out whatever equipment they had brought along, including what had been declared as the latest tech that wouldn't blow out, or up. According to Horace, their guide, something had blown up. Repeatedly. The man had dropped by Ezra's current office, the sheriff station, and had told him a few tales from the trail.

"The Territories are rather… exceptional," Ezra told Dr. Dean, drinking his Coffee of the Day. Inez's bartender liked to experiment and this one was a smooth, aromatic blend with a little spicy aftertaste. "And single-minded."

"That stuff isn't alive," Dean grumbled into his own drink, a spiked version of the usual black coffee on the menu. "It's energy. We can work with that when we can get a true reading off it."

"Which was met with little success, I take?"

Some of the others looked contrite, angry or resigned. It was rather amusing. Horace had told him everything, from the smoke coming out of the fancy machines, to the sparks and squeals of death before one had blown and another had simply switched off.

"We will one day. We will understand what makes Territories so unpredictable. The weather system that blew over the land had been forecast as a mild autumn storm, but it developed into a category five, a centennial to boot, and no one knows how it happened. You got the brunt of it, but by the time it blew into the Beacon Hills area, it was nothing but a strong wind that barely rattled a window. It must be something within the make-up of this place."

Dean looked frustrated. By the way he flagged down the bartender for another drink, with more than a little extra, he was truly pissed off.

"I've been to Beacon Hills. And Gull's Way. Nothing fits. It never fits. Not even in comparison." Dean ran a hand through his already messy hair. "I wanted to see if we could talk to the Seminole, but Horace found no trace of them."

"They move deeper into the Territory with the approach of winter," Ezra answered easily. "They are also not the most sociable of people. They like to keep away from us."

Except maybe Vin. And sometimes they would show themselves when the pack patrolled. They rarely if ever came close enough to talk to them.

Dean grunted something.

Ezra stayed with the less than fortunate team of scientists until all trudged over to the hotel for a hot shower. Dean had already rented the breakfast room for the afternoon and the night to go over their results. Knowing Ursa Beurer, the proprietor of the establishment, she had given them a reasonable but still hefty rate.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Vin found their resident crossbreed late in the afternoon, sitting on the flat roof of the sheriff station, enjoying the rare warmth of the sun. After the storm, a sunny day was something to enjoy.

"Mr. Tanner," Ezra greeted him with an easy smile, the glint in the green eyes belying the so formal address. It was a game to him, one he loved playing, and it was all a matter of the tone of voice, not the way he addressed someone.

Vin gave him an easy grin, seeing the greeting as what it was. "Ez."

He settled down next to him, long legs stretched out in front as his back rested against the low wall behind him.

"Sun bathing?"

"Hardly. Taking a time out from too many requests, some rather outrageous now, I have to say, and our sheriff's continuous inquiries into my technical skills."

Vin chuckled. "So you hid on the sheriff station's roof?"

It got him a shrug.

They both watched the busy street for a while, their presence removed from prying eyes, though they were perfectly well able to see what was going on.

"May I ask what brought you here?" Ezra asked after a while.

"Just wanted to make sure you're doing okay."

"I'm perfectly fine."

"Also, we're still good in case you want company."

The green eyes slid sideways, looking at the tracker, taking in the other man. Despite their differences, both men had become good friends and aside from Chris, Vin was one of the closest relationships Ezra had had all his life. Sure, he had never trusted him with his true heritage, but it somehow had never even come up in his musings. Vin was Vin. He was this easy-going, laid-back and very grounded individual, someone who was so very much at home in the wilderness beyond the town's borders, and who was sure to watch and wait before passing judgment.

Vin had taught him a few things, even if he would never confess to it to anyone. Chris probably knew anyway. They had talked about Vin's affinity to the land, to nature, to the energy that ran through everything.

"It's not a living thing," Ezra had stated.

"No."

"Sounds like one, though. The way you talk about it."

"The land is alive. It's not aware, though. It's not some ancient creature in slumber. It's just… there. We are all part of it. We all belong or we don't. The Territory chooses the protectors, not the other way around."

"So… it chose you?"

Vin had only shrugged.

"And us? We're… tolerated?"

"The pack is part of the Territory. We belong."

And that had been that. Ezra hadn't tried to dig deeper, but he had browsed the extensive library in town, spent hours of his off-time in the silent rooms, reading through quite interesting texts. Nothing really answered his questions, but instinctively he knew that Vin was right. You belonged or you didn't. Like him.

"I might just pick you up on that," he now said.

"Might throw JD even more off your trail if you might do it now."

He laughed, shaking his head, the emotion real and spontaneous. "Have anything in mind?"

"Just a quick visit to Nettie's. She's still refusing even the most basic in comm devices. Just want to make sure."

Ezra rose, all fluid grace, and dusted off his clothes. "Well, then let's check in on the lady. I think I should stretch my legs a little after the grueling office work."

Vin slapped his back. "See you in fifteen minutes. Be prepared to run."

The crossbreed scowled at him. "What is it with you and Mr. Larabee wanting to see me in my shifted form all the time now?" he complained.

"You've been hiding yourself way too long, Ez. Also, it's been two weeks now. I'd go stir-crazy."

"I'm not hiding," he muttered.

Vin cocked his head, lips twitching a little. Ezra's glower intensified.

"We have perfectly good modes of transportation. Horses, Mr. Tanner. Riding is an accepted way of travel."

"So is your own legs."

He rolled his eyes. "You're not going to let me ride," Ezra grumbled.

"Nope. You've been cooped up in town for too long. Muscles need exercise."

"I wasn't complaining," Standish muttered darkly. "I like this town. I like being cooped up here."

Vin slapped his shoulder. "No, you don't."

"Do you even know me?" Ezra asked, mock-insulted.

"Only too well."

"Apparently not. I'm not an outdoors man."

Vin gave him a look that called Ezra not so much a liar but more someone who was really bad at what he was doing right now.

He sighed.

It got Ezra a toothy grin, then the tracker just pushed him toward the trap door that led from the roof to the staircase.

"Fifteen minutes, Ez. Counting."

Ezra kept mutter insincere complaints all the way down the stairs. Vin kept ignoring him.

XxXxXx

But he was there, on time, as a red fox, the wind ruffling his fur, ears turning as he took in the sounds around him, listening with all his senses.

The sleek form of the mountain lion silently padded along the back road behind the business buildings, down an alley that led to the stables and from there into the wilderness beyond the town's borders.

No words were needed as the two shifters left Four Corners.

tbc...


	15. Chapter 15

'Miss Nettie' was the old woman who lived by herself in the middle of the Territory and who was generally known was a spry, contrary old girl. Vin had taken a liking to her and dropped by several times a month, just to see how she was doing. Nettie Wells was of an undetermined age, had always lived at the small house, and she refused to move closer to the town or even install a more modern radio. Hers was held together by what Tanner called spit and prayers, and Ezra sometimes wondered what museum it might have belonged to.

Then again, a museum would pay a hefty dollar to get their hands on a working antique like that. Like almost all her furniture and installations. Her only more modern possession was a wind generator and a solar array, though those still looked like they had been handed down as well. She had installed everything herself, Vin had once told Ezra, and she maintained it.

Nettie still had her own garden, grew her own vegetables, and she hunted. She had Casey, who visited regularly from town, sometimes stayed with the older woman for weeks, and helped her. Casey called her 'aunt', but Ezra doubted they were related, despite sharing the same last name. There might be a common ancestor somewhere, but according to Vin, Nettie had never married, had had a few siblings who she knew nothing of at all, and Casey's mother had been an only child.

Nettie was simply one of those more colorful, unique souls out here, the kind of people who made up the Four Corners Territory.

The storm hadn't done a lot of damage in this area and it looked almost peaceful, until the moment Nettie was out on her porch with a rifle pointing at the two new-arrivals.

"Hey, Miss Nettie!" Vin called.

"Tanner! Nearly shot your furry ass! What got your hide up here?" She squinted at Ezra. "And who's that?"

"We're just checking in on you," Vin replied. "And you know Ezra."

"Standish? Can't say I ever saw you shifted." She lowered the gun. "Fox, huh? Figures." She regarded him closely. "Fitting."

Of course fit. That had always been the plan. Deceive, obfuscate, hide.

"How are you?" Vin asked, walking closer, ignoring the comment.

"A little weather doesn't do me in, Tanner. You know that. There's folks out here who run screaming from a distant thunder. I've lived through storms before." Nettie shrugged as she secured the gun.

"I know. We're just making rounds, have a look around the outer houses and farms."

"Wasn't so bad out here. Some moaning and groaning, some rain. Nothing else. House is still standing." Nettie put her weapon on the table. "You want a bite to eat? Got some clothes that might fit you, just in case you're shy."

Her eyes lit up with what Ezra clearly saw as mischief and the fox grimaced. Shifters rarely if ever carried clothes with them. He didn't mind nudity, but not around Nettie.

"Just passing through," Vin came to the rescue. "You need anything?"

 _Like a new radio_ , Standish thought sarcastically.

"No, all's well. You boys look after the others. I'll give a holler when there's something I can't handle."

 _With what?_ Ezra mused, tilting his head.

"Don't give me that look, Standish," Nettie warned him, hand resting on the gun.

It was as old as her, probably older, and Ezra wondered if it was even functional. And if it was, could she hit anything with it?

"I've been in Four Corners since before you were born, pup," she went on. "The fancy tech doesn't work anyway. Saw some of them scientists traipse around, too. They never believe it either."

"Yeah, they came back a while ago," Vin laughed. "As usual they complained about gear breaking."

"Hard heads," the old woman agreed. "Idiots, too. Now, make yourselves comfortable. I got some stuff to do."

"Where's Casey?" Ezra asked, looking for the young woman.

"In town. She's picking up some delivery."

And would most likely spend some time falling over her feet around JD. Their sheriff and Casey had an on and off thing, mostly consisting of awkward flirting and even more awkward near-dates. Ezra had cringed a few times as he had watched the interactions. Buck had tried to explain the finer details of turning a man's head to Casey, but she wasn't the type for skirts and dresses. And JD was trying a little too hard to be the rough and tough regulator to pick up on the little nuances between them.

Vin grinned, apparently picking up Ezra's thoughts. "Let's catch a breath here, Ez," he decided. "Chris won't mind if we don't get back until night fall."

No, he probably wouldn't.

xXxXxXxXxXxX

Despite her claims that others might need them more, Nettie didn't mind the two shifters staying as she puttered around the homestead. Pots and pans were banging around in the dark interior and she carried her wash to the cloths line, refusing help before either man could other.

Ezra just sat on the porch, watching the peaceful land, more at ease out here than he would confess out loud.

The way Vin looked at him, the other shifter knew.

Finally Nettie took some very sweet, fruity cake out of her small fridge and pointedly served it on platters.

Good lord, Ezra thought with resignation.

Vin had no modesty and shifted, shooting the fox a pointed look as Ezra contemplated killing him. Nettie dug out two shirts and pants for them to wear, then dished out more cake and made coffee. Her comment of "Nothing I haven't seen a hundred times before" didn't help. Ezra's evil look just had her grin.

So much for not wanting a bite to eat, the crossbreed mused as his pack mate eyed the treat appreciatively. The man had a massive sweet tooth.

Vin polished off three slices, looking full and content when he was done.

"That tasted wonderful, Miz Nettie," he sighed, patting his stomach.

"Old family recipe," she replied, looking pleased.

Ezra had to confess it was one of the best dried fruit cakes he had had in a while. Even if the clothing was atrocious and he had been sitting bare-foot at the table.

"You're still more like them fancy city boys than Territory," Nettie told him out of the blue, though not unkindly.

"I was born in a city, Ms. Wells," Ezra pointed out.

She waved it off. "Doesn't matter for shifters. They got it in their very bones. You can feel it. You know this is right."

Ezra glanced at Vin, who had his eyes closed, apparently dozing, but the smile on his lips belied that.

"You're here, one of us, Standish. After two years the land can tell what and who belongs. You do."

Ezra refused to read anything deeper in the words and simply chewed on his last fruit cake. Vin's eloquent eyebrow-raising did nothing to help, even if the man still had his eyes closed.

He simply ignored them both.

Nettie snorted, shaking her head. "Hard-headed. Of course. You got a pack, Standish. You got an alpha. Rumors have it you got more."

He felt his poker face slip into place, giving nothing away. Nettie grimaced and shook her head again.

"Don't play, boy. This is your Territory as much as it is Larabee's. Might wanna explore it past the settlements one day. Might surprise you."

"I'm quite fine where I am," he replied warily.

There had been a few trips past the homestead borders, deeper into the place that Vin knew so intimately, but aside from Tanner, and maybe Chris once in a while, the regulators never broadened their patrols to head into the heart of the Territory.

Vin opened his eyes and raised another eyebrow. Ezra went back to ignoring him.

xXxXxXxXxXxX

They left the old woman to her business an hour later and continued along the ancient animal path that snaked through the rocks, bushes and small patches of forest.

Ezra huffed a little sigh of contentment as the wind swept around them, ruffling his fur. Vin didn't comment, but his blue eyes sparkled.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Ezra had been out to Chris' cabin several times in the past. It was a rather large place, bigger than what he had expected when he had first come here. In Ezra's mind the cabin would have been a one room affair, a basic kitchen, maybe an outhouse.

It wasn't. The rather large building was on private land, Larabee's territory within the Territory, and trespassers were usually only of the animal kind. The cabin held all the amenities of civilization, down to running water and power, which had surprised Ezra the first time.

"I'm not some savage cave-dweller," had been Chris' annoyed rumble.

No, he wasn't.

Now, looking at the man sitting on the porch, only in his black pants and boots, the suntanned upper body bare in the warm noon sun, Ezra felt something inside him of him twist with longing. He loved every inch of the man, loved to wrap his arms around the slim waist and hold on to him. He could lose himself in that body.

But what he felt, what was between them, wasn't purely sexual.

Yes, sex was part of their relationship. But this… this was more. It was a connection so much stronger. So intense. Requiring complete trust and openness. Ezra knew that this man held his very soul in his hands, that he had given it willingly, under no duress, and he didn't regret it.

 _Square hole, round peg_ , he thought. But they fit. Good lord, they fit. It was amazing.

There had never been talk about him moving in with his alpha and mate. For one, Ezra liked staying in town. Then there was the fact that, despite the romance novels Vin had mentioned, the mate didn't spend all his time with his partner. They didn't pine after one another, didn't snuggle up together at night, or went at it like bunnies because of some mystical bonding time. Nor did he ache when he didn't wake up with his mate next to him each morning. People loved to read all that fiction and Ezra had found it amusing, but it wasn't even close to real.

Reality was different and still so much more intense. They came together naturally, shared bed space, shared Chris' cabin or Ezra's room, and there was no pining involved. It didn't mean he couldn't appreciate the lean, muscular form, the grace and power inherit in each move, and enjoy just looking.

"The pack's not coming?" he now asked as he approached, looking around.

"Nope. Just us. I think Buck told me that we might need some alone-time, as he phrased it. Work out the last kinks. Get it out of the system. And I'm not going to put quotes on that."

Ezra chuckled. That would be just like the man.

"So it's just us now, Ezra," came the low purr. "With a lot of time on our hands."

Oh dear lord…

Chris regarded him steadily. Those intense eyes flashed wolfishly and Ezra felt his breath catch. Anyone who had ever met Chris Larabee, the regulator, would claim the man had no humor, no playful bone in his body, and seduction was foreign to him. Ezra knew it was all untrue. If he wanted to, Chris could be all of the above and he could be very, very… actually intensely… sexual.

The kiss that came next was filled with longing, need and a claim that underlined every other claim he had on Ezra. Yes, that was something the romance novels got right, he thought faintly. That singular intensity.

"Mine," Chris whispered against the wet lips and nipped at them.

Ezra made a low noise deep within his throat, managing a nod. The raw passion inside him rose, always there when he was with Chris, something that hadn't abated.

"Mate," Chris murmured, nosing against his neck, up his jaw and cheek. "Always. Didn't tell you, but I will again and again, using words. As often as you want to hear it."

He felt a little laugh bubble up inside him. "I like words, Chris," he replied, lips moving against lips. "But I know. Have always known. I don't need the repetition."

"Good."

Strong, sure fingers removed his coat, opened his plain white shirt, pushing it all off the muscular frame and exploring warm, soft skin, as well as old and new scars. Ezra closed his eyes, exposed, feeling vulnerable and still stronger than ever when with Chris. He let the other man run his fingers and his lips over the hard planes, let him lick, nip and deliver tiny bites that sent thrills through his body. He loved to feel that strength. He reveled in the power. He needed that man so badly, it hurt sometimes.

"As much as I enjoy what you're doing," he murmured throatily, "I much prefer a bed for the rest of it."

Chris laughed against his neck, the next bite a little harder. "Not much for exhibitionism."

"Never were."

Larabee bared his teeth. Still human teeth, but they looked dangerous. A feral grin. "Let's find a place you approve then."

Ezra was all too eager to take him up on that.

xXxXxX

Chris lay on the mattress, breathing hard, pulse hammering against his neck, his breath coming in short gasps.

"Fuck!" he managed.

Ezra grinned, equally exhausted and pleasantly sated, almost drained. One of Chris' hands was curled around his wrist, holding on tight, and he let him.

Grounding.

In oh so many ways.

Chris looked as relaxed as Ezra felt, at ease, and still there was so much coiled strength underneath the deceptively human façade. Ready to spring into action should anything be stupid enough to attack.

Shifters didn't spontaneously grow fangs and claws in human form. There were no half-shifts, though the Fenris line was rumored to be the source of the werewolf myth. Chris had only rolled his eyes back when Ezra had teased him mercilessly with it.

It had gotten him a hickey he had had to hide under the collar of an always buttoned up shirt and a tie. Buck's knowing smirk had followed him the whole day.

He leaned over the blond and captured Chris' lips, who opened up under his gentle assault. Clever hands stroked up Ezra's sides, skimming over the new scars. He wrapped an arm around the smaller man's waist, kissing him softly, clearly enjoying the feel of them together. Their kisses continued, deep and loving and quite hot, but aside from a little caressing and stroking, neither initiated the next step.

It was like a low-key thrill, something to have and to hold and to enjoy, something no one else but him could ever feel this way. Nothing could ever compare to this amazing feeling of belonging, of having his mate.

"You're heading somewhere with this, Mr. Larabee?" Ezra teased.

"Hm, I don't know, Ez. Got any ideas?"

Chris hand was now a lot more southern and when it wrapped around Ezra's cock, the crossbreed hummed in appreciation.

"Lots."

The hand started stroking. Slowly. Applying just a little more pressure each time.

"We might wanna start testing them then," Chris murmured, the light in his eyes promising a lot of good things.

"We might," was the playful reply.

Chris was all for it.

tbc...


	16. Chapter 16

As uneventful as the days after the storm and his return to Four Corners had been, matters changed within a heartbeat when the daily coach came in, dropping off passengers from the train. Ezra was sitting outside Inez's, watching the coming and going as he usually did when a coach was due. One came in right at noon every day, another came twice weekly in the early morning hours. He liked to see who was new, who had come back, what was dropped off at the coach office.

Sometimes one of the other six was there with him, but Chris was out on regular patrol with Vin, Buck was keeping tabs on the lunch bunch that had swarmed into the restaurant, JD was at the sheriff station, and Nathan still wasn't back from his trip to one of the outer farms where he had been called to. Josiah was probably still sleeping after his night patrol.

So Ezra was on his own as he spotted the fashionably dressed woman, blonde hair coiffed to perfection, wearing designer clothes that were absolutely inappropriate for a place like Four Corners and that had probably cost more than most people here made in two months or more. She looked barely in her forties, but Ezra could attest to the fact that she was a lot older, though make-up helped along with the illusion. She was like a bright bird of paradise flitting about the worn street and along the gray and brown buildings.

She drew more than one fleeting look.

"Oh dear lord," he murmured and got up slowly.

Dread pooled in his guts, nerves suddenly on high alert, and he squared his shoulders as he watched her look around. A smile crossed the woman's features, but it didn't really reach her eyes. It was almost predatory, but it didn't reach Larabee levels. An overwhelming need to run and never come back spread through him.

But Ezra stood his ground, looking at the new-arrival with a bland expression.

"Ezra, my darling son!" Maude Standish exclaimed and spread her arms as if she was about to hug him.

Ezra knew better. Hugs were reserved for when they suited a need. To turn her into a loving, single parent, for example.

"Mother," he only said, though even that word was hard to get out. Ever since he had told Chris the truth, thinking of her like that was… foreign.

She barely touched his arm, her gloved hands just brushing over the fabric of his outdoor jacket. The weather had turned colder and it was nasty most nights, downright frosty in the morning, and today was one of those bleak days where the sun barely peeked through the cloud cover. Leaves had turned quickly in the last days, the brilliant reds an indication that autumn was now at its peak and winter was about to set in.

Ezra had dressed appropriately for his morning watch, the thick coat, while bland in comparison to his usual jackets, was no less fine a garment. It was thick enough to ward off the cold, just like the material of his black jeans.

"What brings you here?" he asked neutrally.

"Well, can't I visit my only son?" Maude asked brightly. "In his little… hamlet in the outback?" She sniffed. "I can't say much has changed for the better."

Ezra felt himself stiffen. "Nothing will change," he answered. "The Protection Act prevents developments."

She sniffed again. "I see you didn't get my letter."

"The mail can be slow sometimes."

"It's a miracle you even get it here." The way Maude looked at the town, at the people going about their daily business, she deigned them unworthy of her attention or consideration.

"If you only came to tell me about my life choices again, you can as well take the next coach back."

Maude's eyebrows rose a little. "Of course not." She eyed the saloon and sashayed past him, fully expecting Ezra to follow.

He did. Mainly because he wouldn't let her out of his sight.

The saloon was filled with construction workers, ranch hands, townspeople, and whoever else had come in for lunch. Maude looked utterly displeased and slightly put out to be in their presence, so she continued to where Ezra's room was over the saloon's premises. Ezra shot Inez a weary look, which she returned with a grimace of her own. She briefly nodded at a bottle of fine brandy, a clear offering, but he declined. As much as he wanted to drown himself in alcohol, it would be better to face Maude Standish absolutely sober.

Inez gave him a pitying look. Ezra just sighed, then he followed.

Maude was already in his room. She looked like she was afraid to touch something, that her mere presence might attract dust and grime to her clothes.

"You still haven't relocated to finer accommodations?" she asked as she surveyed his room.

Ezra shrugged out of his coat. He was wearing one of his habitual vests underneath, with a clean white shirt. His mother ran an eye over his outfit and her frown spoke lengths.

"It suffices," the crossbreed answered.

"You live like those workers down there, Ezra! You have started to dress like them, too. Everything is shabby and run-down, wherever I look. It's well below your standing."

Ezra felt something rumble through him, affronted by the words. His room was clean, well-maintained and held all the necessities he could think of needing. Nothing was plush and pompous, which suited his needs. He liked it here. It had become something close to home.

"I'm not visiting royalty," he told her, proud his voice was even. "I'm a regulator. I uphold the law."

Her nose wrinkled. "Which is still beyond me. How can you sink so low, Ezra, darling son? Appearances are everything! I taught you that. As a con it would be superb, achieving a pardon, insinuating yourself into the heart of this decrepit town! You could run for mayor, even! What an angle to work, honey! But you are not," she added with a grimace. "You're not using this position of perfect opportunity."

"I'm not. And I'm not insinuating myself anywhere. This is my chosen life now." Ezra stared at her, hard, eyebrows dipping. "You really came here just to nag me about this again?"

"Nag? Ezra!"

"What else would you call it, mother?"

Yes, the word tasted wrong. It was as wrong as everything that was between them.

"I want you to come to your senses, son! It has been two years and you still haven't left this cowtown and its unkempt citizens who might not even be able to read and write!"

His jaws clenched briefly. "I'm not leaving," Ezra repeated. "Especially not because you asked."

"If you had gotten my letter, you would know just what you could have!" she told him firmly. Maude pulled off her leather glove and showed him a thin, golden band. "I could buy the whole town with just what this ring cost, darling!"

"Who is the unlucky fellow?"

She ignored the question. "I told my dear, new husband all about my uniquely gifted son, my dearest heart who would be so perfect to run one of his companies, maybe even his whole empire."

"Not interested."

"Ezra!"

"I have a perfectly good job. I'm a Territory regulator. It's what I want to do, what I'm getting paid to do."

"Paid?! You call this measly allowance payment for the danger you put yourself into each and every day? For this?" She gestured at the room. "For living in these bedraggled conditions? Doing menial labor? You shame me, Ezra Patrick Standish! This isn't how we live! This isn't far above living on the street! Threadbare linens of questionable origin and rickety furniture?! This is no place for you!"

"It's my life and I want it."

"It's not how I raised my son! You have such potential, Ezra! Think of all the greatness we could achieve! This is such a waste of your god-given gifts, honey!"

Something inside Ezra broke. It shattered into a million pieces and somehow it freed something else. It was a sensation like a knot had been split, like suddenly being free of an oppressive weight that had sat on his very soul. Like his whole skin burst open and emotions he had held in check were unleashed.

It was an incredible feeling.

Heady.

And it had an underlying fierceness he had never felt around this woman before. For the first time there was no hesitation, there were no softer emotions, and there was no more hope that Maude might one day change truly love him as a human being, not just a means to an end.

"You didn't raise me," he said flatly, holding her stunned expression. Even as it turned cold. "You didn't," he repeated, voice absolutely flat now. "Maude. You dumped me wherever they would take me. So-called aunts and uncles, some of which you are not even related to. You paid them. Unless you needed my talents for a con."

Her lips became a thin line, face hardening. "I fed you. I taught you your trade," she stated levelly. "Who would have done that? Who, I ask? They would have thrown you away, Ezra! Like trash!"

"So you bought me. Made me into your little lap dog. Glittering collar and all."

"You went to the best schools! You had the best in teachers! You were clothed and fed and had a life of luxury!"

"As a pet. When you needed me. When it served a purpose. Those schools I attended? For a week? And the teachers? For all of a month at best? Worth nothing!"

Maude's lips thinned even more, her eyes growing colder, harder. "Do you think you would have survived on your own? Do you think you would be here today? In this backwater town? Wasting your talent on these scraggly-toothed low-lives? Endangering your life for people who would burn you at a stake if they knew what you were?!"

"I might not be here without your intervention," Ezra agreed impassively. "I might be dead. Or poor and begging in the streets of your glamorous cities."

Her smile was almost triumphant.

"Yes, you gave me life and shelter. You spent money on me. But you only did it because I was your tool for a new con, Maude. I was your ticket to a life you couldn't have lived otherwise."

Her eyes flashed with fury. "You ungrateful little bastard!"

"I am grateful, don't worry. Your loving care and tender mothering got me to this place. It led me here, to the Larabee pack. They gave me a second chance."

"I gave you a second chance!" she hissed. "I was the one who took you in, who taught you everything you know and need to survive in this world! You owe me everything!"

"And I repaid you. Every single day of my childhood life. Every day after that when I became of age. I made you more money than you had to spend on your little acquisition. I made you more than you would have been able to collect on your own. I stole for you. I demeaned myself each and every day that I spent as your lap dog or any other pet you needed to have. I paid you back a hundred- if not a thousand-fold. Up until I decided to leave everything behind and start over."

"This?" She threw out her arms, encompassing the town in the gesture. "This isn't a new life! It's a dead end. It's a place that is lucky to have running water and electricity most time of the year! This is a place for simpletons and hobos! You will wither and die here, Ezra!"

"Most likely. But it's a life I enjoy," Ezra told her firmly and it wasn't a lie. It had stopped being a lie a long time ago.

"The cities are your life, child!" Maude switched back into her mother-mode. "It's where you thrive. It's where you belong!"

"With you? My loving mother?"

"Yes!"

"No."

The anger rose again and she clenched her hands into fists. "Do you really believe in this so-called pack? Do you really believe they are your friends? Do you think they will still welcome you as a regulator when they know the truth about their little fox shifter?" she hissed. "What you hide from them? What you are afraid anyone could find out?"

"Is that a threat?" Ezra growled, feeling something inside of him snarl at the words.

A tremor passed through him, but it wasn't fear. It was something a lot darker, more personal. He had never felt like this when confronting his mother, until now.

 _Good heavens, I'm starting to channel my alpha_ , he thought.

Perfectly plugged eyebrows rose. "Just one wrong word to the right person, Ezra. Maybe that beautiful blond widow who runs the newspaper of this ramshackle place? And does your precious pack know? Does your team leader? Or do you already call him your alpha?"

Ezra's face closed up and his eyes were frozen with an expression of pure anger at her audacity.

"Do not threaten my life, Maude," he said coldly. "I won't come running back to you."

"I'll be all you have left when I'm done! Your Mr. Larabee would tear you apart if he knew what kind of an abomination he has among his so-called pack! Wolves are primitive that way. Like all animals. Like you would have been, Ezra, if I hadn't saved you from a life on the streets, begging for scraps!"

"We are done. Leave," he told her darkly. "Now."

A smug expression in her eyes, Maude smiled at him. "You won't be able to hide what you are forever. Someone will find out. Sooner or later. Maybe sooner now. You will come back to me, to the cities, see the life that is so much safer than anything you can have here, darling. Crossbreeds are a blasphemy, an evil no one can tolerate, Ezra. They will kill you. Your so-called friends will turn their backs on you in a flash. Can't you see that I only want what is best for you? Have you become so lazy and trusting? I taught you better than that, Ezra! I taught you never to trust anyone, to seek out friendships, have relationships aside from professional ones! You are a disgrace to me!"

There was a sudden rumble, barely human, and Maude froze for a second. Ezra knew the reaction humans had to feeling a powerful shifter, especially an alpha wolf of the Fenris' breeding. The primitive hindbrain clamored to run, survival instinct overruling everything.

He had been aware of something a few seconds before Maude had called him a blasphemy, erasing the last piece of sympathy or even empathy he had held for the woman who had raised him.

Maude turned and looked at the man in black, fighting for composure. It wasn't that Chris looked in any kind wolfish. There wasn't a single sign of what he was underneath the human façade, but even to Ezra he had never looked more lethal, more intent on tearing someone's throat out with his bare hands. The black duster helped, hanging around the slender frame like folded wings.

tbc...


	17. Chapter 17

Ezra had to give it to her, she was good at trying to keep herself together.

"Ms. Standish," Larabee said, voice gravelly and deep. "I'd advise you take your leave now." He sounded barely human, despite his appearance.

"The name is Emmet. Lady Maude Emmet. I married Lord Hartland Emmet, Mr. Larabee," she replied haughtily. "Of Emmet Enterprises. You would do well to remember that," she added loftily. "It just happens to be the largest shipping enterprise this side of the country, expanding to the west."

Chris didn't react and Ezra knew he couldn't care less. Emmet Enterprises could be run by the President himself and Chris wouldn't give a damn. He just looked at her with that steady, rather unnerving expression, that promise of death. Ezra had quite some experience in what it was like to be fixated by those intense eyes, to see the Fenris lurking underneath the hazel eyes. He had faced the man often before, had felt his power, the energy licking through his veins, but unlike Maude, Ezra had never been truly frightened. Maybe a little impressed, but never scared.

"I am visiting my son," she went on, head held high, but there was a slightly dazed look in her eyes.

Chris' body suddenly went completely still, like the eerie silence before a storm that is about to break lose and wreak havoc. "You claim familial rights? A mother's bond to her child?"

She hesitated for a moment at the almost formal wording, clearly at a loss as to what Chris was going for. Ezra's eyes were on his alpha, trying to keep himself relaxed, not react to the words. He remembered what Chris had said when they were at the shelter. He remembered it clearly.

"Ezra is my son," Maude stated, but it sounded far less steady than before. "He is my family. Of course I claim such… bonds, using the primitive terms you seem to like."

The crossbreed winced inside at her clear disdain.

"Ezra is my pack," Larabee told her, a volatile growl in his voice. "I am his alpha."

She had the audacity to laugh briefly. "My son doesn't run with a pack! Such a primitive notion! Like primordial times where shifters were nothing but the animals they turn into! You might be the team leader of these appointed regulators, but Ezra will not play this role much longer. We are leaving for…"

The flash of yellow in Chris' eyes had her stop and her throat worked noiselessly as she took an involuntary step back.

"Ezra isn't leaving."

"I'm not leaving," Ezra added almost the same second. "Not with you, not with anyone. This is my Territory, Maude."

"And you are not welcome," Chris snarled. It sounded like he was barely holding himself together, but Ezra saw that his alpha was in perfect control.

"You can't threaten me like that!" she whispered.

"I already am."

"He is my son!"

"No."

"How dare you…!"

"Ezra is not your son. He never was and he won't be now. You bought him. As such, no family ties exist. As alpha, I claim pack ties."

"Pack ties again?" Maude's face was twisting in anger. "I'll have your badge for how you treated me, how you threatened me, Larabee!"

"Not wearing a badge."

There was something like amusement in Chris' voice and it caught Ezra by surprise. The alpha's lips curled in a humorless smile, his expression still deadly.

"I'll have you removed from this dusty excuse for a town and you'll never find a job ever again!" Maude snarled, though it was as threatening as a puppy's.

"You are in Four Corners Territory, lady," Chris said evenly. "I am the law here. I was appointed by a Section Judge. Take it up with him. Don't forget to mention that the reason for your eviction. Or that you bought a crossbreed child, raised him like a pet, used and abused the child for your cons and other purposes. I could have you thrown in jail just for that."

Her mouth opened and closed again as she wrestled for words. The penetrating stare from Chris was unnerving.

"Yes, we know what Ezra is. I know who he is quite well. I am the alpha of this pack, Lady Emmet. Ezra is a trusted member. My mate."

Maude's eyes widened and Ezra thought she would pop a blood vessel any moment.

"Mate?" she croaked. "Mate?! You lowered yourself to such a demeaning position? A… a… primitive consort? I might just understand that you needed to pass the time with a warm body, Ezra. I can see the attraction on some sort of basic level. But a mate? You enslaved yourself to… to this man?"

Chris' face was a reflection of Death About To Happen and Ezra easily stepped between him and the Lady Emmet. He doubted the Fenris would do anything rash, but one never knew. Chris was a perfectly controlled man, wouldn't just fly off the handle because of some crass remark, but this was something on a personal level. This was pack and his mate, this was Ezra.

They didn't touch, but there was a brief connection nevertheless, and Ezra was reassured that the alpha behind him wouldn't do anything rash. He was too seasoned, too experienced.

"I suggest you leave," Ezra said calmly. "Alone. Enjoy your current standing, Maude. As long as it lasts."

Probably until she had cleaned out enough funds to find another, more lucrative target. Ezra highly doubted she had ever felt real love in a relationship. He had never been able to get it from her either.

"You… you want to stay like this?" she sputtered. "Like the animal you are? As someone's toy? And for what? Sex? You can have that in the arms of one those many fine daughters of the rich businessmen I could introduce you to. Or if you fancy a man…"

Ezra could feel the rise of energy behind him again. It was a warning, mixed with blatant posturing, and a little bit of murderous intention. He met Maude's eyes, took in her still so very pale face. She knew Chris was close to the edge, was probably taunting him on purpose, but as much as she wanted a rise out of the alpha, he didn't give her the pleasure. Larabee wouldn't give her anything to use against him and the others, wouldn't give her the pleasure of making himself a target.

And his very presence was growing more and more intimidating. While Ezra wasn't looking at Chris, he was convinced the eyes were golden now.

"You should leave," he said softly. "Now."

"You will regret this, Ezra! You will see what this… friendship will get you. You think you're anything but a warm body to while away the time? Your softness and empathy will be your downfall one day!"

The last was like a final parting shot and Ezra looked at her with almost pity. Chris' eyes were now pure gold and he snarled. Maude couldn't bite back the whimper hat escaped her lips.

"Leave," the Fenris whispered. His voice was rough and low, sounding like he was chewing glass. "Now! There is a coach waiting and you will be on it. Or you will spend the night in jail!"

Ezra met her terrified expression, feeling nothing.

Nothing at all.

She rushed past him, past the clearly furious alpha, and was out the door faster than a jackrabbit on the run. Chris followed her, stalking, prowling, each movement measure and reflecting the coiled power underneath the human façade. Ezra followed, refraining from touching his alpha or even talking to Chris, but he was less than three steps behind him when they left the saloon.

Maude was already halfway to the coach that would leave in the next hour, skirt flying, and yet she had a dignity to her that belied her terror. Chris just stood under the saloon's awning, lips still pulled back from even, human teeth. His eyes had returned to their hazel color.

"I didn't know you were back from patrol early. I doubt someone called you when Maude arrived and you high-tailed it back, which means you cut patrol short for some reason. You didn't have to defend me," Ezra said conversationally as he tracked Maude's flight. She was by now demanding a ticket and a seat from the driver. "I wouldn't have gone with her."

"She claimed family," Chris ground out, voice still darker than normal, reflecting what he felt. And he felt a lot. "She called you an animal!"

There was still some distance between them. No closeness showed. Just two of the town's regulators watching the busy main street. Still, people gave Larabee a little more space, shot him surreptitious little looks.

Ezra felt something inside of him clench at the words, at the memories they brought up. He had thought his mother would leave him alone after her last visit, but she had to come back; she had to try and upend his new life.

Going as far as threatening to reveal what he was to the people he called friends.

A knife between the ribs wouldn't have been a worse action.

Emotionally he was still reeling, but on the outside he was his calm and composed self, fighting hard not to let the mask he wore slip.

Now was not the time.

And he wasn't a damsel in distress, swooning into the arms of his alpha. He had handled his mother for a very long time and he had survived their confrontations before. Of course, she had never been this forward in her threats, but he wouldn't fold now. He wouldn't give her the pleasure.

"You called me your mate," Ezra finally said softly. "Openly. In front of a stranger."

::You are my mate!:: was the forceful reply and Chris' eyes were hard, unyielding, boring into his.

::She could use this information against us, against you:: he said, fighting against the tremors that went through him.

If his mother used that… if she somehow tried to sever the connection between them… Ezra knew he wouldn't… couldn't go back to what and who he had been before Chris and the pack. It was impossible. He was bound to these men, their relationships within the pack as colorful and varied as they were themselves. None of the Seven could undo what the two years had done, and Ezra was no exception.

He wanted this.

The smile Chris gave him was terrifying, promising darkness and death in one. It was an expression befitting a monster from the dark, a night terror, but not a perfectly human face.

::Let her try:: he rumbled, voice rough and deep, making even Ezra shiver a little.

Not from anything like fear; it was more a reaction to the power the few words wielded.

::You heard what she said about Mrs. Travis:: Ezra had no doubt Chris had already been there to hear the whole argument. ::Just a few words and the lovely reporter would print a whole new section of wonderful nightmarish tales of crossbreeds!::

This time the tremors were real, couldn't be hidden, and Chris' eyes changed from hard and unyielding to soft and understanding. There was still an edge there, but no longer as cutting and serrated as before.

::Ezra, the Territory has its own laws. We are the law. She won't turn the town against you or drive us away from you::

He met the intense gaze, held it, let a bleak smile play over his lips. ::You can't speak for everyone in town::

::That I can't, but I can speak for us. And I will speak to Mary if you want, warn her of Maude's possible attempt of slander. She wouldn't print lies and childish tales of horror about shifters::

::Crossbreeds:: Ezra whispered.

::No difference. Mary wouldn't do anything to hurt the pack. And the town and its council is quite aware that the pack is their protection. You leave, we leave. They verbally crucify you, we leave::

::Chris…:: He shook his head. ::You know she likes you::

The incredible reflection in the hazel eyes would have been comical any other time. ::Mary knows I'm not interested in her. Yes, she likes me. Yes, I like her. She is a friend, Ezra::

::I know that, Chris. I'm not playing the jealousy card on my part. But with me out of the picture she might see it as a second chance::

Larabee looked like he wanted to drag him into an empty room and yell at him, but he didn't want to lose track of Maude, who was still arguing with the ticket office and the driver.

::You are my mate, Ez. My mate! Mary understands what that means::

Ezra looked into those intense eyes, saw the anger and need mixing in their depth. ::She knows:: he murmured.

::Yes, she knows. She was actually the one asking::

Ezra made a non-committal sound, slightly perplexed.

::I wouldn't want her companionship, Ezra. I was never interested. It's you. It was always you::

Chris' expression left no room for argument.

::Sometimes I need a reminder of just why I love you, Christopher Larabee:: Ezra said softly, seriously.

The Fenris blinked, looking like he hadn't expected this response to his words.

"But I do," Ezra said out loud.

Chris' lips curled into a real smile, something more private and warm. There was an answer in that smile, in those liquid hazel eyes, and it was answer enough.

There was a soft whistling. "Man, she ran to that coach like all the hounds of hell were after her." Buck sauntered over and leaned against the awning's support post. "Or should I say: one nasty dog?"

Chris shot him a scowl.

"Took the short patrol route?" Wilmington added. "Or did you have a feeling?"

"Buck," was the one-word warning.

Buck chuckled, eyes coming to rest on Ezra. "Pard?" He was suddenly serious, no teasing light left.

For all his joviality, how he enjoyed life and women and whatever came his way, Buck wasn't an oblivious jokester. He had quite clearly picked up on something going on.

"I am fine, Mr. Wilmington."

Buck raised an eyebrow.

"Buck," Ezra sighed, cursing his defensiveness whenever he was rattled. It showed and his team mates could tell.

"Good." It got him a nod.

And that was enough for the other wolf. For now. Buck wouldn't just let it rest, would probably come later for answers, but not right now. He sauntered off, probably to bug JD or hang around Inez.

Chris expelled a soft breath, probably coming to the same conclusion.

"You want to tell them," Ezra murmured, eyes scanning the street.

"It's important for the pack to know. It could hurt them not to know."

"I know." But he didn't have to like it.

"Ezra?" Blond brows rose quizzically.

Ezra briefly closed his eyes. "Tell them," he whispered after a while.

Chris hand clasped his shoulder, heavy and warm. He squeezed briefly, then pushed away, heading out into the street, toward the coach office.

Ezra stayed, watching the black-clad figure. He was drawn between following and being away from his mother as far as possible.

Finally he walked into the saloon, in desperate need of a drink and a distraction.

tbc... third part of this long scene coming soon


	18. Chapter 18

Despite her express wish, Maude couldn't get a coach ticket. It was already fully booked and no matter how much she offered, the driver refused to take on an extra passenger. Frustrated, she watched the departing coach, mountain of bags next to her.

"Looks like you are out of luck."

At the words she spun around. Chris smiled darkly as she took a step back, paling dramatically again.

"You have two options," the alpha went on, voice low, laced with threat. "You get a room at the hotel for a night and take the early morning coach. Or you follow me to the jail."

"You wouldn't dare…"

"Try me, Maude."

She opened her mouth, then snapped it shut again. With a huff and head held high, she stalked toward the hotel.

It was the moment she was seen by Josiah, who smiled brightly at her. Maude smiled cheerfully back, but it never reached her eyes.

Chris would have to talk to his men about his mate's so-called mother. The sooner the better. While he couldn't stop any of them from assisting a lady in need, he didn't want them to get too close. Josiah in particular had been very enamored by her the last time, and there had been some good-natured ribbing, calling him Ezra's next step-father.

Well, if he ever got enough money for Maude to give him the time of day. While she played along, she had never let him any closer than any of the other men in town.

Chris sauntered into the hotel a while after Maude, nodding at the receptionist.

"She got a room?" he asked quietly.

"Yes, we had a few left." The man shrugged. "Not sure it's what her usual standard is. She stayed at the Rosewood last time she came in."

Chris raised an eyebrow.

Andrew Garber, the man who owned and ran the hotel, and who more often than not was right here at the front desk, smiled.

"I know her ladyship. She raised quite a riot the last time she breezed in here, demanding a suite. Told her we have none and never had any. Recommended Rose's. She has all the frilly stuff ladies like."

Chris chuckled briefly. Rose Wood, proprietor of a small but well-kept bed and breakfast called, appropriately, Rosewood Inn, was a woman of undetermined age who was quite a force to be reckoned with. She charged an arm and a leg from city visitors, but she was known to rent out rooms for locals in need, like after the storm, at barely minimum cost. She had grown up in the Territory, had married, divorced, then married again. Her second husband had made off to the city a while ago, never to be heard of again, but it didn't seem to bother her.

"After the last time, I think Lady Emmet would prefer your standard rooms to Rose's luxury suites."

Because Rose had nearly thrown Maude out on her fashionable behind due to the woman's constant demands.

"She gonna be trouble?" Garber asked, sorting through some mail.

"Nope."

"Good. She only paid for the night. Said she has a coach ticket."

Chris nodded. He gave the man a brief salute, then headed back out onto the streets. He ran into Josiah, who was carrying Maude's bags toward the hotel. Chris gave him a curt nod and Josiah smiled back.

Yeah, he had to talk to his men.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Chris had planted himself on the porch of the saloon, watching the streets, eyes straying to the hotel building more often than not. Maude hadn't been seen since getting her room, and Josiah had left shortly after Chris had, heading to his chapel. He finally turned and walked into the saloon, past where Ezra was playing a few rounds with some of the folks who wanted to have some fun. Ezra's eyes followed him, noticing the still stiff posture, the way Chris was radiating 'do not look, touch or speak to' at the moment.

Everyone was heeding the warning.

Except for Ezra. He nodded at his fellow players as he ended the game. He followed his team leader up the stairs. It was no great surprise that they ended up in his room.

It was no surprise either that the moment the door had closed, Chris was in his personal space, claiming a kiss that was far from wild and primal. It was actually the complete opposite. Soft, exploratory, and yes, loving.

Ezra wrapped his arms around the narrow waist and held him close, exploring Chris' mouth as much as the man was exploring his.

When they parted, Larabee dropped his head on one narrow shoulder, exhaling sharply. The tense alpha posture dropped, leaving only the man in its wake. The man who was holding on to Ezra as if the other man was about to run.

The crossbreed brushed tender fingers along the short hair at Chris' neck, drawing a shiver from the blond. The noise from outside was muted, barely perceptible through the closed, insulated windows and the sturdy walls. Aside from maybe an explosion, nothing would get through.

"It had to happen one day," Ezra murmured, breaking the near-silence. "Not that I was looking forward to it. Or wanted it. I had wished for her to stay in her beloved civilization, run her cons, marry hapless men and liberate their money from them. Teach them not to trust all the glitz and glamour underneath the painted youth."

Chris breathed a little laugh.

"But she had to come here. She had to make another attempt."

"It will be her last," was the growled promise and Ezra felt the tension creep back into the lean frame.

"You made that very clear," he said, amusement leaking into his voice. "I think I never saw Maude as flustered and actually truly scared as today."

"Good."

"You are a savage, Mr. Larabee."

Chris raised his head, the eyes all human, the expression, too. There was an annoyed expression in them. Ezra smiled playfully at him, taking the bite out of the words.

"In a very noble, endearing way," he added. "An alpha way."

"She won't be a problem," the alpha in question stated darkly.

"She might," Ezra said slowly, humor leaving him again. "It's a long train ride back to wherever Lord Emmet resides, Denver, I believe. She has time to think, to plot, to make my life here… problematic."

The growl was almost animalistic. "We'll make sure it won't be."

It was a vow. A promise. Ezra met the dark gaze, read the truth in there. But he also knew that if the woman set her mind to it, she could spark up a whole lot of trouble. She knew powerful people, who again knew more powerful people. And if a Section Judge of Orrin Travis' caliber heard that one of his regulators was a crossbreed… Ezra didn't really want to imagine his fate.

Chris' lips distracted him and he let the sensual kiss chase away the dark clouds. But not completely. The fear was still there, as it had always been. His pack knew, but no one else. And he didn't want to endanger their lives, their existence in this special place.

::Ezra. Don't:: His voice was soft; it sounded almost like a plea.

::Are you a mind reader now?:: he asked playfully.

::Don't have to be. I know you. This won't be a problem. Ever::

::I won't run:: he murmured. ::I won't disappear on you::

::I know::

Chris' hands now joined into the distractions, running over the tightly fitting vest, along his sides, up his back.

::You're mine, Ezra. She won't ever have you. She can't claim you:: he repeated what he had told both Ezra and later Maude. ::Not even Travis. Least of all him. I don't answer to him in pack matters and never will::

Chris started to undo the buttons. He finally pushed the vest off the slender shoulders and attacked the shirt underneath.

::Nothing she can or will do will change anything between us, between you and the pack, Ez:: he continued, clever fingers playing over Ezra's warm skin. ::We all have your back::

Ezra surged forward and kissed the other man hard, Chris replying equally strong and unrelenting, nipping, kissing, biting.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

If anyone missed the two men, no one came looking. Ezra wouldn't have left the bed for anything in the world. Especially since Chris was determined to see how far he could push him, how often he could make him come. Ezra wasn't passive either and Chris featured a few interesting bruises and bite marks himself.

Both men only resurfaced the next morning, Ezra feeling still a little sore and even a little bit overstimulated from their last exercise before leaving his room.

By Chris' smirk the other man knew it only too well.

::Bastard:: he murmured, adjusting his cuffs.

The smirk grew into a filthy grin. ::You said so this morning already, Ez. And a few times last night. Among other things about me. Quite flattering ones:: The last was almost a purr.

Ezra shot him a narrow-eyed glare, but he couldn't stop the smile twitching at his lips. Their night had been intense in so many ways, not all of it sexual. Maude had unlocked something inside Chris, something primal and possessive, something that wouldn't let Ezra believe for a minute that this woman could ever take him away. And it had severed the connection Ezra had still had to her. It had freed him.

Chris had never left such deep marks on him, not even after their first, and decidedly very hot and wild night together. He had never looked at Ezra like he had last night. He had never demanded so much from the crossbreed while simultaneously giving everything he was to Ezra.

And Ezra knew they were just at the beginning of this new path together.

"Is it mating season already?" Buck laughed when they walked into the sheriff's station.

If looks could kill, Chris was closest to achieving that outstanding feat. Buck only laughed harder, shaking his head.

"Damn. Well, good for you, old dog. And Ez. I'd say it was good for you, too."

He winked at Ezra, who rolled his eyes.

"Missed nothing either. But you could have brought me breakfast."

Chris glared, a growl leaving his lips, but there was nothing threatening about it. It was more annoyance than anything else.

Buck kept grinning as he turned back to his work. Larabee checked the schedule of incoming coaches and deliveries for today, took note of anything that wasn't routine, then left. Ezra raised an eyebrow at Buck. Buck only mirrored it with a wide smile, but there was a serious note to it as well.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Why wouldn't I be? As you just noted, it was a rather pleasant night."

Buck chuckled, but the seriousness wasn't chased away. "I know you and the old dog had a lot of fun, Ez. I got eyes. Those eyes also saw Maude and she wasn't here for family time."

Ezra's masks were firmly in place.

"She didn't leave the hotel for a second, even had dinner brought to her. She and Chris had a run in and it wasn't like the last time. That was downright pleasant back then. Something happened."

He still refused to react to the gentle probing. Buck expelled a breath and leaned back in his chair.

"Alright. Hope it's not going to end in a blood bath." There was the old glint again, the teasing note. Ezra appreciated it.

"Only verbally," the crossbreed assured him. "Maude will be leaving today."

"She actually already did, Ezra. This morning. Lit out early, first coach. Saw her when I checked out the arrivals and departures, had a chat with Toby, who was driving today."

Ezra blinked, slightly thrown. His mother had already left? She hadn't drawn it out, tried again to convince him?

The pool of dread from yesterday was back again. His mother never gave up easily or early in a game. She always had a back up plan, she always schemed to still get everything her way.

He would know.

He had lived with that woman almost all his life.

"I see," he murmured.

Buck watched him like a hawk, but he didn't ask again.

Ezra left the sheriff station, feeling in a daze.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Chris walked by the hotel and Andrew Garber confirmed that Maude Emmet had checked out. Quite early, complaining that breakfast consisted of coffee and a sandwich. Garber had simply told her that breakfast hours hadn't started yet.

The coach had left before sunrise.

With Maude on it.

Chris had confirmed that with the coach office.

He would make sure she wouldn't be back.

There was a shift near him, soft, barely perceptible. His senses had picked up on the approaching man, recognizing his second-in-command immediately.

"Heard Ez's mom came in last night. Buck said she lit out of here like all the demons of hell were chasing her. Or one vicious hellhound."

Chris glanced at the tracker who almost noiselessly joined him as he walked through the streets, checking on his town.

"Couldn't get a ticket for an immediate return either. Had to spend the night and never made an appearance at the restaurant, the saloon or any other establishment," Vin went on. "Something we need to know?"

As Chris' second it was a valid question. As anyone from the pack it would be a valid question, too. They depended on each other, on trusting the pack. That meant information flow when it came to problems or soon to be problems.

"I want everyone here for lunch," Larabee only said.

"Trouble?"

"Not yet."

Vin nodded slowly. The blue eyes scanned the streets. "Ezra okay?"

Chris gave him a humorless grimace of a smile.

Vin just nodded again.

It had been answer enough.

tbc...


	19. Chapter 19

It had been JD's idea to have a barbecue out at Chris' place, probably the last before the weather no longer permitted it. Whether he had proposed the get-together because of the latest events, reacting to the tension within the pack and their fierce protective streak toward one another and especially Ezra; or if it was simply coincidence, Chris didn't mind. It was the best idea he had heard all week.

JD had beamed at him with youthful enthusiasm. The youngest of the pack always enjoyed the time out in the middle of nowhere, close to the forest, the lake, and the opportunity to have a pack run.

Buck had been all for it, especially with the prospect of a mountain of juicy steaks and baked potatoes. The others had looked far from opposed to the idea. Pack times were important, away from town life, allowing each pack member to be himself.

Chris had called them together prior to their day off from regulator duties, making if an official meeting where he had detailed Maude's visit, her threats and her current status as a persona non grata when it came to Four Corners. The alpha had again talked to Ezra about his decision to let the team know, that they needed to know, and while Ezra hadn't been happy, he knew it was important. His mother could destroy everything if she found the right person, with enough power, enough money, the right connections, and the other five men had a right to know.

Their reactions had been unanimous. Disbelief, outrage, anger, then complete agreement. Maude, whatever last name she might have in the near future, would not be welcome in this Territory. Ever again.

Somehow it was a weight off his shoulders, enabling Ezra to breathe more easily, while another part of him had been incredibly embarrassed to lay his personal matters so open to the other men.

But they were his pack.

They accepted him, wouldn't use these weaknesses against him, and he could trust them with even such intimate details.

Right now Ezra sat on the porch and watched the antics of Buck and JD. Both men had shifted right after devouring several steaks, as usual. The older wolf was teaching the younger a few close combat tricks. It was a lot of mock fighting, with no serious injuries, just a few bruises, and a lot of dirt ending up in both shifters' fur. Fall leaves flew up left and right as they chased each other everywhere.

The change of season was happening fast now, the leaves dropping, creating a blanket on the forest floor. The weather was unsteady at best, changing from brilliantly sunny and cool to a unicolor gray sky and dusky light all day as it rained.

Chris watched them with mild interest, though he would interfere if matters turned too intense or too wild.

Josiah was in charge of the open fire where steaks were still cooking. Knowing JD he could still eat two more after his romp through the leaves, and Buck never turned down free food. Shifters ate a lot more than non-shifters and they metabolized it quickly. Josiah was sticking to water or lemonade, not touching even one beer. Nathan had brought along a non-alcoholic variation, but Sanchez had refused. Ezra had tried the rather malty concoction and decided it tasted like melted caramel drops mixed with some herbal drink.

Vin had gone off to stretch his legs for a while and had returned with a lazy smile and an easy gait, speaking of some quality shifter time, probably climbing trees, jumping from tree to tree, maybe even a little nature communing. As much as Ezra always teased him with it, he knew the tracker needed this affirmation with his home soil. The land was him and he was the land in so many ways.

Wiping his fingers from the delicious steak juices still clinging to them, Ezra placed the plate on the porch, smiling as JD got the better of Buck and both wolves went down in a tangle of limbs and fur. JD yipped a challenge and raced off, the first to gain his feet, and Buck growled, bolting after him.

Chris was suddenly next to him, all long limbs and slender grace. He raised an eyebrow.

"Fancy a run?"

"You go and have at it," he declined. "I just showered. And had lunch. A good lunch." Ezra stretched out his legs, crossed them at his ankles, and folded his fingers over his stomach, smiling at the other man.

"We're going to the lake. Nathan is fancying a swim."

Ezra refused to be baited. He projected an air of total disinterest, seeing the spark of a challenge accepted in Chris' eyes.

"Weather's still warm enough."

At least for shifters, which were a lot more enduring when it came to dropping temperatures. Nathan and Josiah were quite hardy when it came to cold, even swimming in the middle of winter. Ezra drew a line at that.

"I'll digest my steaks here, thank you."

::Ezra…::

Chris' expression had him duck his head away from the knowing eyes. He knew exactly what Chris wanted to say. They all knew what he was and still Ezra hadn't really shown his true form since that day. Not that he usually ran around as a red fox most of the time, but he would shift now and then.

Lately, not so much anymore.

Only Vin and Chris had seen it, and Josiah because of some hazy memory. JD had looked eager, on the verge of asking, but apparently Buck had told him not to pester Ezra about such a personal topic. Nathan had been his patient, knowing self.

Chris regarded him long and hard, then nodded slowly. No pressure. No force.

The alpha rose and slipped out of his clothes in a smooth move, shifting into his other shape. Ezra followed the pack, one of three still human, but Nathan was the first to follow his instinct and the black bear trotted along, heading for the lake in anticipation of a romp through the cool, clear water. Josiah was next. He briefly looked at Ezra as if gauging for a reaction, but Ezra just smiled easily. The enormous, shaggy brown bear rumbled, then slowly, sedately walked on.

The crossbreed took his time, enjoying the day, the sounds around him, the feel to the air. Part of him twitched to be in his first form, wanted to feel the leaves underneath his paws, his fur ruffling in the wind, wings shivering to be spread and to soar. Another was too tightly coiled to give in.

When he arrived at the lake, everyone was half drenched or, in JD's case, fully. Nathan was paddling in easy strokes, heading for the tiny island in the middle of the lake where he had peace and quiet, and a lot of sun.

Vin watched it lazily from his own sunny spot high up on a large boulder, light brown fur gleaming.

Ezra just stood there, torn, instinct fighting against common sense.

This was his pack.

They knew.

Chris knew and Chris was his mate. There was no rejection waiting, no disgust or fear, no rabid accusations and threats of death.

He was different, but he was pack.

So much had happened in such a short time, culminating in Maude's visit, leading to here and now. This place, where they could all be themselves.

And still he hesitated.

In the past he had spent such team outings at the lake in his human shape, claiming it was uncivilized, that he didn't need it. A few times he had let Chris gently bully him into shifting, always the red fox, and it had always been enjoyable.

Especially when Chris had curled up next to him later on, seeking the closeness that was so obvious between them.

This was the first time out here, together, since the revelation that he was a crossbreed.

Nothing was different, except that being a red fox would be… a lie.

Ezra met Vin's calm eyes, the mountain lion so deeply settled in himself, it was a miracle he wasn't sprouting roots.

With clenched teeth he finally undressed, meticulously folding his clothes, taking his time.

The red fox shape came easily and he waited for a long moment, finally looking up and meeting his alpha's eyes across the stretch of sand and gravel between them.

He didn't need to be red. He didn't have to assume a shape they thought he was. Ezra Standish could be himself.

The crossbreed stepped out into the open and let his natural color bleed over the red, erasing it, the light gray making him almost invisible against the sunny, yellowed grass.

Buck bounded over to him, dripping wet, tongue lolling. "Ezra! Finally decided to join in!"

A vigorous shaking had Ezra try to escape the fat water droplets. "Bah!" he muttered.

JD was the same, dripping wet, intent on getting Ezra wet, too, so the fox bounded away, but he was barely fast enough as a tiny tsunami of water was dumped his way, Josiah's huge paws easily capable of dunking two buckets full on his.

Ezra whisked through the wet obstacle course and finally hopped onto an ancient tree that had been washed ashore a long time ago.

"Savages," he muttered and shook his slightly damp fur.

Chris sauntered over to him, a black hole in the middle of a sunny late autumn day, the yellow eyes filled with mirth and happiness.

"Of course you are enjoying this," Ezra grumbled, flicking an ear.

"Of course." He pushed his dark nose into Ezra's side. "You can be yourself, Ez. Really be yourself."

He felt his breath stutter.

"They know," Chris went on. "You don't have to hide. No one but us is here and I know you must have been your true self many times before on the past. Your wings are strong, the muscles trained." He nudged him a little and Ezra leaned against the wolf for a second.

"You just want to lick them again," he muttered, trying for humor and failing miserably.

"I'd do more than lick them if you weren't so skittish about it."

Ezra stared at him, eyes wide with disbelief, something hot racing through him. He choked a little on the next words.

"W-what?"

Chris grinned, a feral smile that was all sharp teeth, but he said nothing else. Ezra finally collected his thoughts and sighed.

"You really want to shock them," he stated.

"No. I want you to be comfortable in your true form. It is the form you were born as, Ezra. It's you."

For a long moment the crossbreed just sat there, then he took a deep, steadying breath and finally unfurled the wings from his back, creating them out of nothing it seemed. They stretched, feathers rustling, and he shook them easily into shape. The gray feathers gleamed healthily in the sun and the wings looked strong. Yellow eyes watched him, intense in their scrutiny, almost primal in their attention, and Ezra shivered again. It was a pleasant feeling, seeing that appreciation and eagerness in Chris, knowing he wanted Ezra to be as he had been born. No lies, no falseness, no hidden agenda.

The Fenris lightly nipped at the wing closest to him and Ezra felt another tingle. This was playful and almost strangely intense in one. The strong jaws, easily capable of breaking a man's femur, closed over the wing. A demonstration of power to an unschooled observer, of dominance. Something so much more meaningful for the two shifters involved.

Ezra never even twitched away, looked at the Fenris with utter trust. Chris licked over the damp feathers again, then nosed against his mate's neck.

::Don't ever feel the need to hide:: he murmured, the words a mix of command and plea.

Ezra looked into the yellow eyes, then nodded.

He wouldn't.

It was a promise.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

The sun was past the noon point, still high enough in the sky to spread light, but the strength was already waning with winter coming in soon. It was a beautiful, bright day, with hardly a cloud, cool without being cold. Vin watched the lake, the sandy beach that tapered into pebbles until it reached larger rocks that soon turned into boulder. Vin had chosen one of those boulders as his look-out.

Enjoying the sun like the rest of the pack, be it at the beach, the tiny lake island where Josiah had gone to, or the forest, which had been Nathan's designated choice after his swim and sunbath, he let his eyes stray to a patch of sand hat was dusted with a spattering of grass. It was easy to make out the black shape of Chris, stretched out on his side, not a care in the world as it seemed. There was no mistaking him for anyone but the alpha of the pack, even just dozing after taking a refreshing swim and chasing Buck around.

Next to him was the much lighter, smaller shape of Ezra, the fox almost perfectly camouflaged. Chris' head was shaded by a large, gray wing, pushed into the feather appendage.

"Don't they look cute?" Buck teased, joining Vin on his look-out with an easy, graceful jump.

"Don't let either of them hear it."

The timber wolf chuckled, shaking himself a little. Then he sat down, tongue lolling.

"He is a sight," he murmured after a moment.

Vin nodded. Ezra was. Seeing the wings on a fox was strange, but then again… not. It was him. All of him. It had pained him to see how much Ezra had hidden from them, what had had to happen to bring out the whole truth. Nothing about the wings was an aberration, abnormal, evil or twisted. They were amazing and he knew Nathan wanted to look at them, was curious about this mixture of different animal shapes, but Ezra was still skittish in that regard.

"He'll learn," the tracker said softly. "In time. He learned to trust us. He'll learn to show us, too."

Buck nodded. "Sure of that."

It would take a while, would probably need some coaxing, but he was convinced Ezra would feel safe enough to be his true form around them more often. Hell, just seeing him as a fox, even without the wings, was a win.

Grinning to himself as he kept watching their resident Fenris doze under Ezra's wing, Buck kept Vin company for a while longer.

xXxXxX

Chris buried deeper underneath the feathery appendage, a soft sigh of contentment escaping his lips. The sun, while not strong, still warmed his back and his muscles were absolutely relaxed. Having Ezra as his first form self, seeing him, being able to touch his like that, was a heady feeling. He wouldn't voice his thoughts out loud, but he loved his mate like this. He wanted to see the wings, wanted to touch them, feel them.

::Addict:: Ezra murmured lazily and raised his head out of the thick black fur. He had truly fallen asleep like that, not just dozing off like Chris had done.

Larabee grumbled as the wing twitched and Ezra laughed.

::Addict:: he repeated lovingly.

Chris finally lifted his head, making a point of licking over the feathers.

::I'd never get you out of my bed if I could have wings in human shape:: Ezra teased.

There was an unholy light in Chris' eyes. ::I wouldn't leave your bed if I didn't have a duty to fulfill, Ez. Wings or no wings.::

The fox swallowed, green eyes wide, startled by the words. "Uhm," he managed, blinking. "I…"

Chris grinned wolfishly, pleased by his still persisting ability to render the other shifter speechless. So much had changed, but this wouldn't.

"You okay with the others?" Chris asked, switching topics easily.

"It went… easier than expected."

There had been big eyes and exclamations of surprise, and while Nathan had looked close to ecstatic to see the unusual, shifted form, he had held back. Vin had watched everyone closely, just like Chris had done, though he had been standing right next to Ezra, but there had been no tension and no bad vibes. JD had been his exuberant self. Buck had simply given Ezra a huge, tongue-lolling grin.

They were good.

Chris now nosed at the smaller shifter and Ezra licked over the wolf's nose, green eyes holding no shadows.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Flying over to Josiah's little island retreat had been accompanied by JD's awed gaze as the gray fox took to the air. Buck had been sleeping, belly up in the air, the sun drying his fur, missing the whole thing. Nathan was nowhere to be seen and Vin had disappeared not too long ago, too. Chris was watching his pack and Ezra, eyes following the crossbreed as he sought out their seventh.

Ezra landed gracefully, shaking out his wings for good measure, and leaving them out. He folded them against his body and looked at the massive bear who had watched him come in.

"Ezra," Josiah rumbled.

"You're keeping to yourself," the shifter stated calmly.

"I have a lot to think about."

"You've been thinking for a while now."

"Sometimes it takes time to get a handle on the past."

Ezra tilted his head. "I think the past should remain in the past."

"Wise words, brother."

"And while I understand the need of a quiet retreat, especially to evade the antics of our two resident timber wolves, we are pack."

Josiah chuckled. A low, deep rumble that would frighten anyone who didn't know him. He had been among those trying to get Ezra wet, but he had turned to the solitary island not much later.

"You came here for some peace and quiet then?" he asked.

Ezra flicked a dark gray ear. "If you would share your humble abode?"

"Be my guest."

He hopped from the rock he had been perched on and trotted over to the massive, dark brown form. Josiah was larger than the largest bear Ezra had ever seen and he knew he had been lucky to end up with only flesh wounds. Those claws were long enough to slice him in two.

"I could do with a tour of the place."

It was a small island, easily traversed in barely fifteen minutes, but Josiah simply stood and took the lead, gigantic paws sloshing through the water while Ezra decided to stay higher up on the beach.

There was an easy silence between them. No hard feelings. Ezra felt no wariness of the so much bigger shifter, nor any fear. He hadn't had nightmares either.

Josiah looked at him when they had reached the other end of the island. Ezra just gave him an easy, foxy grin.

The bear huffed a soft laugh and splashed water in his direction.

The crossbreed launched himself in the air and flapped his wings at the offender.

The next splash was one of those miniature tsunamis again that hit him right in the face and had him splutter.

"You, dear sir, fight dirty!"

Josiah's rumbling laugher was a delight to hear.

tbc...


	20. Chapter 20

Town life went on as usual, with winter now here and here to stay for a while. Temperatures had dropped significantly, but snow was still scarce, much to everyone's relief.

Ezra quite enjoyed the slower pace, even if some miscreants still tried to rob a store or the bank, tried to pull a fast one on some unsuspecting farmer, or simply attempted to hide out in a Territory until things had blown over from wherever they had come from. It kept the seven men busy and sometimes ended up with a few bruises and split lips.

Mostly for those foolish enough to attempt something, but a few times for the regulators, too.

Like this time.

Ezra was nursing a sprained wrist from the latest altercation, which had involved a chase through the town, across the cemetery and nearly to the livery. There was also a bruise on his cheek from a lucky punch, but it was negligible. JD had a bump on the head because the guys had resisted arrest quite harshly, upsetting the sheriff's balance and knocking him into the wall, then the chase had started. They had apprehended their wanted men, had thrown them in jail, Nathan had looked over their injuries, and things had calmed down again.

Nothing new.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

Just another day, another fun story, and Ezra was really looking forward to the end of his shift and a long soak or at least a quick, hot shower. JD was helping to clean up, talking to the people whose property had been damaged by the chase, and Ezra himself was spending the remainder of his shift at the station.

Routine.

Until Mary Travis stepped into the sheriff station.

Ezra rose slowly from his chair, surprised to find the owner of The Clarion here. "Mrs. Travis," he greeted her. "This is a surprise. How can I help you? Has something happened?"

"No, not at all." Mary looked around, as if to make sure they were alone. "I wanted to talk to you."

Oh hell, shot through Ezra's head.

That look in her eyes, the way she wanted to make sure they were alone, and she was a reporter to boot.

Something had happened, but it wasn't something that concerned the Seven. It was just him.

"Me?" he just echoed, masks firmly in place.

She nodded.

He gestured at the chair, smiling politely, blandly. "Please. Take a seat. How can I help?"

Mary took a seat. She tugged a blond strand of hair behind her ear. "I received a package two days ago, accompanied by a letter. It was a quite comprehensive, though outrageously outlandish collection of various… articles, if you want to call them that. As a journalist I wouldn't. Nothing of what I found was seriously researched, based on facts, let alone scientific in any form. The very nature of the articles, and one book, are slanderous at best. Racy, gearing for sensation and sales figures, not information and neutral assessment of facts."

Ezra looked at her, masks unwavering, eyes shielded, the perfect reflection of polite interest. Inside he was pulling slowly away from her, readying himself to run, mentally making a list. It was an automatic reaction. It was his usual reaction, even now, because it was instinct and his need to survive. He just knew what Mary had gotten, where it might have come from, but a small part refused to believe in the truth.

Until she pulled out a letter.

Embossed, on rather expensive ecru paper, though there was no company logo on it, let alone a return address or a sender.

The writing looked faintly familiar, but he was too accustomed to faking everything, even his handwriting, to think she wouldn't have altered her style.

But Ezra knew.

Oh god…

"The letter is rather short and hasn't been signed," Mary said, looking at him with such calm, Ezra was slightly thrown.

By now he would have expected anger and outrage, disgust to look at him, maybe even the first shadows of accusations forming in their depths. There was a kind of outrage there, but not directed at him. It was more like a personal affront, something done to Mary herself, and apparently anonymous letters containing slanderous material were such an affront.

The Clarion was a serious newspaper, known for impartial reports, for clear-cut research, and for not taking any sides. It had surprised Ezra the first time he had read the paper, how it wouldn't push people into an opinion, though it did print letters from its readers, some a little censored when the language became too harsh. Mary didn't take lightly to anyone trying to make her print a certain article, support one group or another, and while she had run favorable articles on the pack, she still kept it professional.

Yes, it was admirable and since the paper sold well, it wasn't a lost cause.

So, using her to spread rumors and lies, print old folk tales and cheap hearsay would get the editor riled up.

"I would have burned it all, but I wanted you to know about this," Mary interrupted his thoughts.

"Burned?" he echoed, mouth dry, lips slightly numb.

She placed the letter on the table, still in its envelope. "I don't give anything on old wife's tales. I know many books were written to scare kids, or adults, those who sell because the sensation of horror they evoke. Carnivals have freak shows for the same reason. Myths and legends are one thing. There is a grain of truth, teaching us about ethics, life and general behavior. Shifters make up a lot of those myths and legends. Some are true, some are absolute make-believe. The package contained nothing of the like. I finds its contents tasteless, horrifying, and downright disgusting. The letter makes it only worse because I know why it was sent."

Ezra opened his mouth to say something, then shut it again. He tried to unclench his hands, his knuckles white against his skin.

Mary leaned forward, expression intense. "I'm not blind, Ezra. Nor am I an innocent. I know who you are to Chris. I know you belong to this pack as much as any of the others. It doesn't matter what you are. These accusations, these so-called truths about you, are nothing but lies. A reporter knows. I'm not after a quick headline to sell, especially on defamation. I can't understand why anyone would want to do this to you, even with your past, but I suspect why it was me they sent the package."

He wet his lower lip. "Mary…"

She held up a hand. "When you came to town, when my father-in-law hired you, I researched shifters. I had to. You were to become an integral part of this town. I also looked more deeply into what a pack is, how it functions, about alphas."

Of course she would have. She was a curious woman and her interest in Chris Larabee hadn't been a secret.

"You are Chris' mate," she said firmly, shocking him again. "Yes, I was interested in him, that was never a secret, but I understood quickly that things between us could never be. Yes, I'm not always comfortable around Chris, which a partner should be. I can accept he is a shifter, I have no problem with it, but he is a Fenris and you know how powerful that makes him, Ezra. You know how it feels to be in his presence, when he switches from calm to protective. I can feel that switch and it scares me sometimes. It's intense. I would never call him a violent man. He would never hurt anyone intentionally. He is a fierce gun fighter, a true protector, but to us mere humans, he is also terrifying." She gave him a small smile, almost apologetic, "But you and him, you are mates. I know that now. And I know what it means."

"You do?" he croaked.

She smiled more at his whispered words. "Yes. I know it's not just a relationship like he might have had it with me. It's far from casual. I can add one and one and easily get to two. I knew something was going on between you two. It grew only stronger in time and he confirmed it when I asked."

"You… asked?" Ezra felt everything spiraling out of control. Mary asked?! Chris?!

"Yes."

"Oh."

Mary gave him an almost patient look, like she would her son, when the boy was particularly dense. "I would have asked you, but I wasn't sure you would really answer. If I asked now, would I get an answer?" she wanted to know.

Ezra felt a tremor run through him. "You already know," he heard himself say, not really answering the question.

"I was given a package full of rubbish and lies, vying for sensation, not facts. And a letter that accuses you, claiming you are an atrocious creature, an abomination and monster."

The words had him swallow back bile rising in his throat. He forcefully folded his hands on the table, nerves on edge, muscles still coiled for a fight or flight reaction.

"Do you even want the answer?"

Mary smiled softly. "You are a friend, Ezra Standish. I've known you for over two years. You are a protector of this town and the Territory. You are part of the Larabee pack and officially appointed by a Section Judge. You are the pack alpha's mate. Yes, I would want to know." When he said nothing, she simply asked, "Are you a crossbreed?"

For a moment Ezra wanted to lie, wanted to spin a story and then run, but it was only a second. He knew he couldn't.

This was his town.

His pack.

His Territory.

There was a fierce sense of loyalty, of belonging, and he would fight tooth and nail to stay. He was done running when trouble reared its ugly head, and this was extremely ugly, or could be soon. He wouldn't leave with his tail between his legs, seeking out greener pastures.

He had friends here. He had his pack and he had, most importantly, his mate.

Had Maude pulled this stunt throughout the first months of his forced appointment as a peacekeeper, he might have reacted as she had predicted. Maybe even after his pardon had come in, though by that time he had become too entangled, especially with Chris.

Now…

Now he wouldn't do what his mother expected.

"Yes," he finally said, meeting Mary's eyes head-on. "Yes, I am a crossbreed."

The editor's smile grew all of a sudden, was warmer now, calm and accepting. "Thank you for telling me, for the truth. And nothing of that package will make it anywhere on a printed pack. Actually, I have burned it already," she added with a grin.

He gaped.

She shrugged. "Whoever is trying to hurt you wanted to use me. I'm not someone to be used. I don't take kindly to such attempts." There was an edge to her voice. "I seek out my own stories to tell. I will judge what to print. The Clarion is not a two-bit paper that has to rely on folk tales and superstition. We have left the Dark Ages behind for a while now. I'm not joining in on a witch hunt."

"That is… laudable," he managed.

Mary chuckled. "It's hard to get into people's heads that serious reporting is an art. We have enough gossip papers."

Ezra rose as Mary did, and when she stepped forward, he didn't retreat. Her hug was unexpected but not unwanted, and he hugged her back.

"Thank you, Ezra."

She gave him a little kiss on the cheek, chuckling at his perplexed expression.

"You are my friend," she repeated. "Not an enemy, never a rival. You and the others, you are good for this town. We are a Territory and we need people like you and the pack. No one gives a damn about what you are, Ezra Standish. You're one of the Seven, peacekeeper, regulator, shifter. And Larabee pack."

Her direct words had him laugh. "There will always be someone with a pitch fork."

"And there will always be someone else to take your side, have your back. In Four Corners, there are more than you think."

Ezra blinked. Mary shook her head with amusement.

"You have absolutely no idea, do you? Ezra, you are very much part of this. All of you are. The town would pick up pitch forks and torches, yes, but against whoever tries to chase any of you away. Some might still have a superstitious nerve in their bodies, but you'd find them more afraid of the Fenris than you."

"Told you," a soft voice said.

Ezra looked past his visitor, finding Vin Tanner slouching in the door. The tracker looked watchful, alert, but still relaxed. Part of him had been aware of someone with them, of a new-arrival, but pack didn't register as dangerous and Vin was his best friend. The crossbreed had instinctive decided not to feel alarmed at the new presence. And damn, the man moved as silently as the big cat he was, even in human form.

Mary gave him a smile. "Hello, Vin."

"Ma'am." He inclined his head and his smile was both open and warning in one.

Mary's nod was an acknowledgement of that. Physically she was no threat. Her eyes were on Ezra again.

"Ezra."

He met her calm, serious expression. "Mrs. Travis."

Her smile was open. "If you ever want to talk." She didn't finish the sentence, just made an inviting gesture. And then she left.

Ezra floundered a little, feeling suddenly a little unsteady.

Vin grinned. "Revelations, Ez?" he drawled.

He pulled himself together by force. "Ah, yes, apparently."

"Nothing new, really."

"Maybe for you," the crossbreed breathed. "This keeps happening at frightening intervals."

He wasn't used to this. Even after having been part of a pack and a family for so long now. At least when it came to outsiders.

Vin pushed away from the wall and walked over to him. "Town's not judgy, Ez. Most of them anyway. Can't be out here. Mary's right. And Maude's not winning."

He looked into the blue eyes. "This won't be her last attempt."

"Let her." The steel in his voice matched Chris' when he had made the same declaration. "We know her game. She won't have a leg to stand on."

Yes, they knew her now.

The door opened again and Nathan walked in, ready to take over from Ezra. His brows rose as he looked at the two men. It wasn't hard to pick up on the fact that something had happened.

"All quiet?" he asked, trying to gauge what had occurred.

Ezra nodded. "Nothing happened."

"Right." And that sounded like he didn't believe it.

"Ezra's having epiphanies," Vin quipped.

Nathan chuckled. "Again?"

Ezra grimaced and gathered his things to make room for Nathan, who was taking over for the rest of the day.

"Anything serious?" Jackson wanted to know.

Vin just looked at Ezra, silently prompting him to talk. The crossbreed hesitated, then handed their resident medic the letter Mary had left behind. Nathan opened it with a curious expression, which quickly turned into something a lot darker. Vin whistled softly, equally unamused, the normally easy air around him gone.

"Maude," he stated, not even making it a question.

Ezra didn't deny, nor confirm, it.

"She's got guts. And a death wish. She'll be lucky if Chris won't just hunt her down and tear her throat out."

And he would. It wasn't an empty threat. Maude was actively trying to drive Ezra out of Four Corners, sever the pack bond, and maybe even endanger his life. No, no maybe about it. If Mary had published those sensationalist articles, Ezra might find himself with a bullet or a knife in his back.

"Talk to Chris before he hears it from somewhere else," Nathan advised. "This is serious. She's out for your blood."

Ezra took back the letter and slid it into the pocket of his coat. "I will," he promised.

Because he didn't lie to their alpha. He wouldn't hide this either.

But it was terrifying to think of Chris' reaction.

tbc...


	21. Chapter 21

Chris didn't explode. He didn't snarl, yell or growl. He didn't even twitch a single finger.

It was a lot worse. A lot more frightening. And very much unnerving.

He simply grew very still.

All of him.

Completely, utterly still. Not a muscle twitch, barely even a breath. The very air around him seemed to change, thickening, condensing into an explosion of epic proportions. It was a storm brewing in the distance, the air charging quickly, hairs standing on end. The lightning within the hazel eyes was there, a flash so brief and gone again, it could have been an illusion.

But it hadn't been.

It was a look that had Ezra want to pray for Maude Emmet's soul.

The Fenris was about to go hunting and he wouldn't stop until he had brought down his prey.

Ezra doubted his alpha had the political connections someone of Maude's experience had, but he didn't need them. If he wanted, if he really set his mind to it, he would find the woman and he would end this once and for all.

The crossbreed stepped forward, fingers curling into the black shirt, as much for his own steadiness as for Chris', anchoring himself on the powerful man, providing the same in turn. He took in the rigid line of the other man's shoulders, the tension that seemed to be an almost physical force.

Hazel eyes, purely human and because of it so very terrifying at the moment, met his.

::Chris::

It was one word and it carried power as he used the silent connection they had, trying to catch this before things spiraled utterly out of control. He didn't want Maude's death. He would never want that, simply for her to leave him and his pack alone.

There was no reaction for a long time. Hazel eyes met green, staring at him, assessing the other man like Ezra was the last obstacle to his hunt, but then Larabee's fingers curled into Ezra's vest, pulling him close, and he dropped his head against the crossbreed's neck.

::The woman has a death wish::

The words were barely human, the voice not Chris' own, low and feral. It should be disturbing, but somehow Ezra couldn't care less.

::Maude isn't someone to give up easily. I'm her investment::

::You're not an investment, nor a business transaction anymore!:: Chris snarled, raisin his head again. He sounded like he was swallowing gravel. ::You're a human being! You made a decision and nothing she can do will change that::

::Nothing:: Ezra agreed softly. ::It won't stop her, Chris::

There was a surge again and the burning eyes were terrifying. The other man's jaw clenched, muscles ticking. Chris' eyes held sheen of gold, almost an illusion, and the deep growl was far beyond human now.

::Don't:: he whispered.

Lips drew back from blunt, human teeth.

::She's not worth it::

A shudder went through the lean frame and finally Chris let his head drop toward Ezra's shoulder again. Ezra simply let the powerful presence anchor itself completely on him.

They stood silently together.

For a long time.

Ezra let his fingers scratch lightly over the scalp, then slide down to caress the hard tendons of Chris' neck. The alpha's whole being seemed to relax, the tension flowing away, and Ezra let him wrap an arm around his waist, hold him tight.

Finally Chris exhaled, warmth gusting over Ezra's skin, and pressed a kiss against the damp area. If it had a little more teeth to it, Ezra wouldn't mention it.

The kiss was tame in comparison to the heated mood he felt emanating from the other man. Larabee had been in countless confrontations, in fights of life and death, but Ezra had never felt him so… tightly coiled, so close to losing himself, and still looking absolutely human. There wasn't a single shift in his eyes once again, there was nothing that showed what prowled around inside his very soul.

::She has made new enemies:: Chris whispered, emotions clear now.

::She's used to it:: Ezra answered softly, sounding almost resigned. He ran one calming hand along Chris' side and back. It was an unconscious gesture, keeping the powerful alpha grounded on him by touch alone.

His mother had left wounded hearts and broken hope in her wake before. For decades. This shouldn't be new, but since it now concerned Ezra himself, it was all the more painful.

::She won't be back:: he murmured. ::She burned herself here. She burned this town."

He knew she wouldn't. It would be too dangerous and Maude wasn't that stupid.

::Not in person, she won't:: came the low rumble.

Chris had to say what had been on Ezra's mind. Of course she wouldn't be back in person. But she had connections and she had money. She could always send a hired gun.

The crossbreed felt something shiver through him. Would she really? Well, not someone with a real gun, he amended. But she would try to destroy him, one way or another. He had defied her, had gone against the woman who considered herself his mother and entitled to his obedience; even now.

::She's trying to spook me, make me run. Turning the town against me would have done the trick not too long ago::

Ezra had never known her to be a singularly vindictive person, but apparently losing him to Chris, to a pack, and the fact he was now mated to the pack alpha, had changed something in her. Maude was on a warpath. Had Ezra been running a con, using Chris' affection and love to his advantage, she would have been all for it. But this was real and she didn't understand real.

He just wondered how far she was willing to go.

Coming here, trying to convince him to break off his so-called con in Four Corners, was one thing. Confronting an alpha wolf was another. And now, using anonymous letters, slanderous articles, and clearly outing him as a crossbreed to the town newspaper, was like a declaration of war.

::She still threatened your life:: was the harsh reply and murderous violence sparked in his eyes.. ::She dared to challenge me!::

::Chris…:: He curled his fingers into the black shirt more tightly, felt the sinewy strength, the hard muscles, and Ezra knew that he wouldn't stand a chance to hold this man back should he want to break free.

The alpha protected his pack. He took care of them. He trusted them and they could trust him in return.

Another kiss. It ended in a little nip. Ezra had to smile involuntarily at the easy affection.

::It's a nice enough day:: he said conversationally, not so accidentally switching the topic abruptly.

He needed to get his alpha out of whatever downward spiral this was leading to.

Chris' brows rose and his lips twitched, clearly aware where this blatant attempt at topic-switching was coming from. But Ezra sensed the darkness slowly receding.

::You offering company for patrol?:: he asked. ::Voluntarily?::

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, easy and lightly teasing. The rush of emotions had run its course and Ezra was looking at the level-headed team leader he knew.

::Seems like it::

Another kiss.

::How can I decline such an offer?::

::I see no way you could:: Ezra grinned. ::Take it while it's still on the table::

::You have a due date on that?::

::I just might::

And this kiss was longer, deeper, relaying everything and still not enough. Ezra let himself be taken by the physical force that was Chris Larabee, not even trying to fight back. When they parted, the hazel eyes reflected less of a storm and more of a balanced human being.

He still didn't move, though.

"Patrol?" Ezra reminded him, voice soft, breaking the silence that had been between them.

"Patrol," Chris agreed reluctantly.

Ezra ran a calming caress over the slender back, drawing a soft sigh.

"I think we should get going," he finally said.

"Before…?" Ezra teased.

"Before I have to ask someone else to cover. We'd never hear the end of it."

Ezra laughed softly. "Can't have that."

xXxXxX

They were on horseback and on their way out of town twenty minutes later. Buck just gave them a sloppy salute and nod as they passed him by.

xXxXxX

By the time evening came around, two hours after coming back from their patrol and after a very long, hot shower, Ezra knew the rest of the pack had been told about Maude's latest attempt. Everyone had gathered for a shared dinner, occupying the back corner of the saloon where Chris could still keep an eye on matters, just in case.

"Geez," Buck muttered. "She's one mean…" He broke off and stuffed a sandwich into his mouth.

JD shot him an annoyed look. Everyone knew the older wolf had broken off his attempted curse word for JD's sake.

"Nothing I haven't heard before," Dunne grumbled. "The guys I throw in a jail cell use worse language than you."

Buck smirked, chewing on his food, but he refused to say any more.

"Ezra?" Josiah inquired calmly.

"I'll be okay. I should have expected it and it's not yet over. She hasn't played all her cards and I'm afraid what she might do now, up the ante…"

Josiah looked a little pained. He had truly like Maude when she had first come here, like many had. It was part of her charm.

"Think we should inform the Judge?"

Ezra's head came up at JD's words, eyes wide, and he made a wheezing sound. "No!" he blurted. "No, I do not think we should inform a Section Judge of what happened here!"

Chris placed a hand on his mate's arm, squeezing gently. He looked at their sheriff and simply shook his head. "We won't. This is a pack matter."

Ezra felt himself relax a little.

"Uh, sorry, sure, yeah," JD murmured.

Buck ruffled his hair and drew an exclamation of denial. "She's attacking us, not the town, kid. Let Chris handle it."

And the rest would follow whatever he did. Everyone knew it.

The rest of dinner passed amiably, the men exchanging stories about their week, about today's day, and Ezra found himself unwind more and more.

Chris's presence was helping, the Fenris exuding a calm, authoritative air. Even if there was the normal distance between them, the closeness was still felt. By the time Vin went to his wagon for some shut-eye before his early morning shift and Josiah headed for the sheriff station, Ezra was as at ease as he had ever been.

Pack helped.

Yeah, he would have laughed at that in his old life, but it was nothing but the truth now.

While Chris left, a last squeeze to Ezra's shoulder as reassurance, Ezra himself decided to amuse himself with a few friendly rounds of cards with some interested individuals. Not too high stakes, entertaining the men as much as he let himself be entertained. He even taught a young ranch hand his first card game. It was fun enough and the boy was eager to learn, even if his game was mostly atrocious. The other men at the table, all from the same ranch, cajoled and encouraged him, sometimes laughing at his and then at their own expense.

Yes, it was a friendly group and not much money was lost.

Ezra left them near midnight, walking along the quiet, empty street, catching some air. He felt relaxed now, the disquiet after hearing about Maude's ploy to get The Clarion's editor against him almost completely gone.

Everything was peaceful and silent, which didn't stop Ezra from briefly dropping in on Josiah, dropping off a large pot of coffee he had taken with him from the saloon. The other man gave a groan of delight.

"Life saver," he sighed.

"And it's the good one. Have a fun night." He tipped his head and left, smiling to himself.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Chris was in his room, reading a book, and he looked up from his perusal of whatever adventure it was about when the crossbreed entered. Hazel eyes assessed him, then Chris put the book on the night stand.

Ezra hung up his coat and jacket, then toed off his boots before he sat on the mattress. Larabee was equally still mostly dressed.

"Ready to get some sleep?" Chris asked.

"More than ready," was the soft reply.

And he was.

The day had been strenuous enough.

Chris raised an eyebrow when he made no move to undress.

"Would it be… weird to say I'd prefer a shift?" Ezra asked hesitantly.

Dear lord, it was as if it was their first time. Somehow it felt like it, too. They had never been their shifter selves within these four walls, unless they were about to go for a run or returned from one. Sleeping four-legged and furry in a bed was… new. And it was what Ezra felt he needed right now.

The alpha's eyes lit up, almost literally as the yellow crept into the light brown, and Ezra smiled a little at Chris' enthusiasm. For a while, back then when they had formed the first tentative pack bonds, Ezra hadn't understood everyone's ease with being their first form selves. For him the fox and all the other shapes had been working tools. He had never allowed himself to feel.

Chris and Vin had gently pushed him into accepting this side of him.

Now it was normal. It was an instinct he wasn't ashamed of.

"No, it wouldn't," Larabee answered. "Not at all."

The emotions carried in those few words were clear enough.

xXxX

So Ezra curled up next to a black wolf, on his bed, uncaring of how many hairs he might find there tomorrow. He buried his own muzzle in the thick fur, sighing with relief and happiness, and Chris playfully licked over the gray wings.

xXxX

It was the best sleep he had all week, actually.

tbc...


	22. Chapter 22

Section Judge Orrin Travis arrived in Four Corners three months after the storm, right at the beginning of what would be a very snow-heavy winter, which had come in late. Clean-up had been completed throughout the town a month ago. All farms were operational again, even if they had to wait until spring to be back in business, and aside from the second bridge, which was still under construction due to the change in weather, not much still had to be finished. Everyone's business was running and supplies were coming in on an almost regular basis now, weather permitting.

The weather had turned from golden autumn with sunny but cold days to rain and the first flakes of snow. Nights were freezing cold, promising even lower temperatures soon, and days were mostly gray and bleak. And occasional nice day brightened spirits, but most everyone was preparing for snow and bitter cold.

The Larabee pack was taking care of whatever was going on, from scam artists and thieves to opportunists who had flocked in, trying to make a bargain with rather illegal means. There had been a few altercations, all quickly subdued. A pair of con artists had come through, but JD had found their Wanted posters and they had been arrested. Another wanted man had been hunted down because he had fled, after robbing two people, almost killing one of them. Vin and Buck had found him just off Donner Creek, which would have led him into the heart of Four Corners Territory. It would probably have done him in to be on his own in the middle of the wilderness anyway.

"Did him a favor," Vin commented as he had thrown the slightly bruised and battered man into a cell. "Could've let him face justice in a different way."

Chris would have been all for it, but he had a duty. He was a regulator.

So several arrests had been made and the people detained until a Section Judge came by.

With the arrival of more snow, things had calmed down considerably. There were hardly any travelers. Seasonal help had left or holed up in their own little cabins or at a ranch where they would help out with whatever was done throughout winter. Temperatures were now in the lower degrees and with the arrival of snow late in the season, travel was only ever done in groups or by coaches.

xXxXxX

The population of Four Corners was never high, but now it was at its lowest, with seasonals gone and some folks waiting out the cold season somewhere else. Businesses were open, the hotel was always welcoming travelers, though it lived off those staying long-term this time of the year, and Potter's Hardware offered repair and home improvement services. Some had already started the holiday decorations. Rose's Bed&Breakfast was almost drowning in colorful lights strung around the porch, along the awning, and around the windows. She had even wrapped wooden squares as parcels to display in her front yard.

The pack couldn't complain about boredom, though. Even with less people passing through, there were always complaints, people going missing, and the occasional dispute over monetary matters. Ezra handled the latter. He had a knack when it came to finances and going over accounting books or financial statements was almost easy sometimes. Telling someone to stop investing in questionable 'once in a lifetime opportunities' with people they had a) never met and b) businesses that operated on the other side of the continent was what had him want to scream into a pillow.

"They never learn," he muttered as he dipped a piece of potato in a hearty, slightly spicy, thick sauce.

"Greed," Buck agreed. "And stupidity. Lots of that. Stupid is catching. It's one of those money rolling schemes again?"

"Investment plan, amazing returns, rates you wouldn't believe are real, and all it takes is a tiny bit of monthly payment." Ezra shook his head and stuffed the potato into his mouth, savoring the flavor. Inez made the best dips. "Of course people don't stick with the small payments. They go in big because the so-called financial advisor gives them a few secret tips he has never given to anyone before. They hand over their savings and off he goes. A few letters follow, with a statement how their investment is developing at an amazing rate. So more money is invested. And another letter about how incredible everything is, with congratulations that they signed this special plan. Then nothing."

"Who is the unlucky victim this time?"

"The Hammond family."

Buck winced. "Ouch. They just had their third child, right?"

"Robert John Hammond, yeah." Ezra shook his head. "Half their savings are gone. JD and I put together a warning we want to print in The Clarion. Hopefully people will read it when it's in big letters and easy words."

Buck chuckled. "Hopefully. When it isn't the sleazy, travelling salesmen, or the gold diggers, it's the investment scammers."

Ezra raised his glass and emptied his drink, washing down the last of his meal. "Never a dull moment."

xXxXxX

He went over to the newspaper office where he found Mary busy with one of the bulky machines, cleaning out parts and replacing some of the older ones. Ezra didn't make the mistake of offering help. He knew the woman was very well capable of doing everything that needed to be done in her business, and she was also very well capable of lobbing a part at him for his question.

She took the warning JD and Ezra had written up, nodding to herself as she read it. "It'll be on the front page of this week's edition," she promised.

"Thank you."

"It's a damn shame," she added. "We keep telling people about all those scams. I repeatedly print articles and stories, and someone still falls for it, ruining himself and his family, his whole life."

Ezra had to agree. He had run schemes similar to this, though not as in-depth and exclusively, and he knew how easily people were manipulated, their hopes and dreams ruined, how greed would switch off the brain.

"Let's hope a warning from the town's regulators has a bigger impact." Mary wiped her hands and gave the crossbreed a smile. "Do you want some coffee?"

Ezra gracefully accepted and spent the next half hour answering Mary's questions about the investment scam. She made notes.

It wouldn't stop the scammers, nor would it stop another idiot getting up every day, handing over his hard-earned dollars.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Did you hear about the Yule party Carl and Inga are throwing tonight?"

Ezra hung up his hat as he walked into the sheriff station, smiling at JD's enthusiasm. Free food and drink always brought that on. Especially a lot of food. Wolves really had an endless appetite.

"Yes, I heard. It will end in a food coma, like last year, as well as several noise complaints, drunks falling all over themselves in the street, and us piling a lot of honorable townspeople in our cells until their wives come to pick them up."

JD grinned. "Yep. Buck's already gearing up for an eating contest."

"With you as his only worthy opponent?"

JD smirked, patting his flat stomach. "I've worked up an appetite. He wouldn't be able to say no to Inez's dessert."

"Good luck then."

Ezra shuffled through some papers, looked at their roster, then grabbed a number of folders to sort through. JD grabbed his guns and jacket.

"By the way, I got the radio going. Even reached Denver."

Ezra's brows climbed. "Congratulations. I didn't think the new parts had already arrived?"

JD shook his head as he zipped up his coat. "I used the old ones." He gestured toward the tech room. "Go and have a look. It's no beauty, but it works. Until the next surge blacks us out again, but hey." He grinned brightly.

Ezra curiously walked into the back room that held all their technical equipment, and his brows rose again. The radio station was running, yes. Sure, it looked like it had exploded and there were wires and parts everywhere, held together by what looked like more wires and tape, but it wasn't broken. Examining everything closely, he nodded to himself. It might not hold, but for now it was better than anything what had been officially sent to them.

xXxXxX

The Yule party ran as every year: tons of food and drink, music and dancing, everyone gathering together to have a good time. Some drank too much, some ate too much, some had too much of a good time.

Buck was dancing with every single or available lady, and also with those who just wanted to have a fun time with their resident lady's man. He was gathering a flock of giggling and amorous women around himself. Josiah was reading to a group of kids while they ate so much cake and chocolate, they would probably end up with stomach aches. Nathan and Vin shared patrol throughout the festivities, keeping an eye on the empty streets in hourly shifts. Chris had set up his own watch inside the saloon, eating and drinking in moderation and breaking up a few altercations with just a clearing of his throat or a low, warning word. Ezra was doing what he did best, which was playing cards, talking to the groups joining him, and using his skills to keep many from separating from all their money. JD was right in the middle of it, enjoying each dish Inga presented him with, eating his own weight in mashed potatoes, turkey and gravy.

By the end of the night, there was still enough food for another night of over-indulgence, and Chris herded the last stragglers back outside. Buck was sprawled in his chair, groaning about too much food.

"Told ya," Vin drawled.

"Didn't see you stopping me."

"I did. Throughout the third serving of turkey leg."

Buck grunted.

"And when you dug into your second chocolate pudding."

Another grunt.

"And when you couldn't say no to the cake with whipped cream, though I couldn't see any cake under that mountain of cream."

Buck groaned again and loosened his belt.

"You better get back to your place before this become indecent exposure," Chris told him, lightly kicking against Buck's booted feet. "Ain't anyone carrying you there."

Wilmington rose with a suffering groan, emptied his last shot, and staggered toward the exit. "If I'm not back by tomorrow, look for my body."

"Your bloated body?" Vin laughed.

"Oh shut up!"

Ezra cleaned up his cards, yawning.

"Ready to call it a night?" Chris asked, smiling.

"It's past midnight, so technically it's already morning."

The alpha gave the last man help in leaving, then shut the door. Inez was busy wiping tables and some of her hired help was already stacking the chairs.

"I think we're superfluous," Ezra remarked as Inez carried the remaining bottles behind the bar.

"Guess so. Vin?"

The tracker nodded. "See you after we're all out of the food coma."

"Like that will happen anytime soon," Vin chuckled and gave them a lazy salute.

xXxXxX

They fell into bed, Ezra feeling too full but very content, and his eyes slid shut. Chris poked him in the side.

"Undress."

"Nah, I'm good," he drawled.

"You'll thank me tomorrow. And I'll thank myself because you'll be unbearable when you wake up in rumpled clothes. You don't like your nice clothes rumpled."

"I'll make an exception," Ezra mumbled.

Chris started to undo the buttons of the red vest.

Ezra's eyes cracked open and he smiled. "Ah, I see."

"Not heading that way, Ez."

"Too bad."

"You'd fall asleep halfway into a blow job."

Ezra grinned. "You offering to test that theory?"

Chris leaned over him and kissed the grinning lips. "Not today. I'm too full and I hate for you to lose such a half-assed bet."

Ezra hummed. He finally sat up and Chris stripped off both the jacket and vest. The rest of the clothes went and finally they were snuggling close together. Ezra was out like a light within minutes and Chris smiled to himself before he switched off the light.

tbc...


	23. Chapter 23

Orrin Travis had been doing his rounds, visiting the Territories in his Section, and so far there had been no more trouble in any of them than expected. He had read the reports that had come in from the sheriff stations. They were nothing out of the ordinary, detailing the usual offenses. Even Four Corners hadn't stood out. But when he arrived he knew something had happened by the stance the alpha had taken on alone.

There was no overlooking the pack dynamics and it had never been. Chris Larabee was a born alpha, with all the power that came with the position. Tanner was his second-in-command. The rest fell in their places, working seamlessly, like a well-oiled machine.

Except Ezra Standish.

Travis would have gladly thrown the former con artist into a deep, dark hole and forgot about the key and his existence. He would have taken him off Larabee's hands without a moment's thought, but the alpha hadn't declared him packless after their first operation as a team together. And throughout the probation there had been no negative reports. Afterwards, Travis had been convinced the wily man would gladly leave the Territory behind, but he hadn't.

Standish had stayed.

He was still here.

And looking at him, now, standing a little to the left of Larabee, but not behind him, he held a firm position in the pack. Not at the fringe. Not tolerated.

Accepted.

Yes, something had happened. It showed in Chris' eyes, his posture, his whole behavior. There was a solidity within the seven men that hadn't been there before, a power the pack had had in the past, sure, but it had never shown this openly.

"Looks like you got everything well in hand," Travis commented.

Chris inclined his head. "Just the usual trouble."

"Good to hear. Anything important I should now about?"

"Nothing comes to mind, sir."

But something had happened, had changed the status quo. They seemed like an even tighter knit group, if that was at all possible. As diverse as the pack was, as different as the men were, they presented a solid, unified front against whoever threatened one of their own.

Something had threatened one of their own, he mused. Something had shaken the pack, but it was nothing Larabee seemed to deign important enough for the Judge of Four Corners Territory to know about.

So it was an internal pack matter.

Travis let it rest. If it had been a pack matter, Larabee would have taken care of it. If it concerned a more official side, it would come out on its own.

"I think I could do with some food and drink before the first hearings tonight," the Section Judge decided, heading for the establishment in question. "Mr. Larabee."

It was a clear invitation and Chris took it. The confident stride of the taller man was tell-tale, as was the way people acknowledged him. No one from the pack accompanied them, the men dispersing to take care of their duties.

xXxXxX

Chris knew something had been on Travis' mind and it wasn't just the town or the Territory. It also wasn't his daughter-in-law, whom he had inquired about briefly. Still, Chris had answered all questions dutifully, going over reports with the Section Judge, expanding on a few incidents the man wanted to know more about, about trespassers, about criminal acts, about prohibited activities the Seven had interrupted or stopped.

"I had an interesting conversation lately," Travis said when he closed the last file, interlacing his fingers on top of the manila folder. "Milton is an old friend, way back from law school. He was Section Judge of Gull's Way Territory before he made it onto the Board. He oversees the Territory Protection Act."

Chris was silent, waiting.

"He called me not too long ago. Milton received word from another friend of his. This friend is a former peacekeeper himself, knows the ins and outs of handling a Territory only too well. He was apparently made aware of Mr. Standish."

On the outside Larabee was as cool and collected as always, but inside something sat up and took intense notice, baring teeth. He felt his hackles rise, the tension almost crawling up his limbs.

"What about Ezra?" he asked calmly.

"According to my friend's acquaintance, the party involved seemed to be quite informed about Mr. Standish's past exploits, his past connections, his closed criminal records, as well as sections in this record that are Eyes Only due to his position as a regulator of Four Corners and your pack member. A pack appointed by me."

Dark brows rose. Travis looked at his interlaced fingers, then at Chris, a fine smile playing over his lips.

"To be aware of such blackened or closed sections, you either have to be outranking a Section Judge or be knowledgeable of who Mr. Standish was. In detail. And not because this person was able to decipher a coded file."

"Sir."

The tension in the slender frame was growing. Chris' jaw tightened. A muscle twitched and his civility was fast declining.

"Milton's friend was on the wrong side of the law once, actually came to his position not unlike Mr. Standish did. A Judge convinced him." The smile was still there. "So he knows the other side of the law pretty well. He still has connections and gave Milton a few ideas just why this information was 'leaked'. I made my own inquiries into the source because should someone be breaking into our records, the Board would want to know. I would want to know. It's a criminal offense punishable by the High Law, which means life in prison. It seems no criminal offense was committed."

"You found the source?" Chris asked coldly.

"Yes, indeed I did. So did Milton's friend. It seems Mr. Standish had a falling out with his own family." Travis raised an eyebrow. "The person in question saw fit to divulge information that could harm one of my regulators quite severely if the wrong people have the wrong intentions."

Chris felt something snarl inside him, the Fenris about to rise. He was too used to locking down on that primal instinct, and it was easy not to give in to temptation, though it was becoming harder when it concerned Ezra. Finally admitting to what the man was to him had both strengthened what they were and weakened his control over his emotional responses.

"Sir." The single word sounded like it had been harshly spat out.

Travis' smile twitched again, leaning back comfortably in his chair. "I was quite aware of who Mr. Standish is, well, was. I have ways to dig into a person's past. Especially when I almost blackmail that person into protecting a Territory, pushing so very different men into what I had hoped would be a strong group of regulators. I wasn't wrong there. I was simply surprised how quickly my plan worked out. I know his file. All his crimes and alleged involvement in certain offenses committed. I know exactly who and what he is."

He let that hang there for a second and Chris inclined his head that he understood.

"It's not a matter of concern to me. Mr. Standish has been working for me for two years, without incident, and I know you have a strong and very loyal team, Chris. Having seven shifters as a pack in Four Corners had made this one of the strongest, most well-protected Territories. Your name carries. Few others have that kind of weight just within a name."

Chris let a smile slip, aware of their reputation.

"The person who leaked all those incriminating pieces to my friend has been made aware of my… unfavorable view of their actions. Including my knowledge as to who she is, what her own criminal record contains, and how I would view her pursuit of this course of action."

Larabee met the calm expression of his boss and a curl of satisfaction settled in his stomach.

"Milton is also quite aware of who she is and in turn returned the favor. It seems Lord Hartland Emmet has a divorce coming up in his near future."

"How sad," Chris spoke up for the very first time, but there was a vicious pleasure in the words that had Travis nearly chuckle.

"Yes. Very much. You see, Chris, as much as you protect your pack and this Territory as the alpha, I protect those employed by me," Travis told him. "No matter their… heritage."

"Good to know, Judge."

"It might surprise Mr. Standish that he isn't the only one."

Chris raised an eyebrow. Travis chuckled softly.

"My Section is one of the largest out there. While there are only three regulated Territories, I am responsible for a few more stretches of land that are patrolled regularly. As Section Judge I have appointed two such mobile teams a while ago. They won't cross into Four Corners, aware of the status of this Territory. They are both only handling matters outside regulated areas. But as they go where they are needed, even pursuing their men, they might run into your pack. One team has a member not much unlike Ezra. In many ways." Travis smirked. "They also have a very high success rate, just like you."

"As long they keep out of my Territory," the alpha stated levelly, an undercurrent of a warning running with the words.

"They will. Unless, as I stated, they are in pursuit. Four Corners is quite a stretch from their usual routes, though."

"Good."

Travis stacked the reports and put them into his travel bag. He would be taking the copies with him.

"I'm glad to see my choices were correct and the gamble I took paid off," he said conversationally as he and Chris left the office they had used.

"I didn't think you were a gambling man, sir."

The older man laughed. "I wouldn't put my wits against Ezra in a game of chance, but I like to wager a bet now and then. In this case, the return profit was… quite surprising and in the end agreeable."

Chris lifted a corner of his mouth, then gave the Judge an easy salute as they walked out onto the street.

Travis headed for the Clarion building to seek out his daughter-in-law. Chris watched him for a moment, then turned the other way and went to look for his elusive crossbreed pack mate.

They would have a busy week, starting tonight with the first hearings in all matters that had been brought before the Judge, and he needed to make sure everything else within his pack was working okay.

Especially concerning Ezra.

Chris had been quite aware of the tension in the other man's frame, the way he had faced Travis, standing with Chris as part of the pack, but still fighting his flight reaction.

tbc...


	24. Chapter 24

Ezra didn't know what he had expected to feel when the Judge had finally made his appearance, but the soul-deep dread hadn't even made it on the list. Maybe a little apprehension, some inkling of fear of discovery, but dread?

No.

He had no idea where it really came from, but he had a solid suspicion. Too much had happened in the last weeks, with Josiah, with Maude, then Mary, and now Travis was here and he had talked privately with Chris. Nothing out of the ordinary, sure. The team leader would be the one to go over files concerning the men that would have their hearing with the judge, as well as those already imprisoned and most likely awaiting transport out of the Territory.

Still.

Instinct told him to be wary.

He stood in his room, eyes roaming over his belongings, his mind cataloguing them, deciding what to take, what to leave, how many bags were safe to carry.

Ezra clenched his hands into fists and pushed that thought aside.

He wasn't leaving. He wouldn't run. He would fight to stay here, even a Section Judge.

And he would lose.

He would always lose.

The door opened and closed behind him. The footfall had been barely audible, the man in black moving with a grace and silence inbred into his ancestry.

"Don't," Chris murmured as he wrapped strong arms around him from behind, aligning their bodies.

"Not running," Ezra managed. _Not running out on you. Never would. Can't._

"I know. In your head maybe. You're drawing up the quickest route, how much to pack, when to leave."

He froze.

::I know you, Ez. I also know it's only in your head. Panic::

::I do not panic!:: he stated angrily, affronted.

Ezra turned in the loose embrace, glaring into the suntanned features. Features he was intimately familiar with and who reflected a broad, open and teasing smile.

"Good," Chris replied and pressed a little kiss to his lips. A warm gentle hand was stroking his back in comforting circles. "Then again, I love myself a good chase, too."

"I'm not going to run like a rabbit! I just…" Ezra deflated. "Maybe I had a notion of… anxiety."

"Panic," Larabee corrected him.

Ezra snarled silently.

Chris loosened the embrace some more and looked into the burning eyes, meeting the fire with a calm not many believed the Fenris possessed.

"Travis knows nothing from any of us. What happened with Josiah didn't make it into any official report. That's pack business. As to us: the same. Don't care if he approves or not."

Ezra blew out a breath and wearily dropped his forehead to rest against Chris' chest. Strong fingers rested over the nape of his neck, playing with the auburn hair there.

::Sorry:: the crossbreed said after a while.

::No apologies needed:: Larabee rested his chin on the bowed head.

::Travis knows, right?::

::Probably:: Chris answered calmly. ::He didn't say it outright. Never does. Hinted::

Ezra sighed, sounding almost defeated.

"What else?" he finally asked as he raised his head, meeting the hazel eyes.

Chris tilted his head.

"Oh, quit playing," was the mutter. "I know something happened, outside of going over a million reports and answering a million more questions. Spill."

Larabee chuckled and pulled his mate over to the bed.

"That bad?" Ezra quipped half-heartedly.

"No. It's a matter that was already handled and won't impact on us in any way. Travis actually did us a favor."

Ezra swallowed. Favors meant being indebted. He already owed the Section Judge more than he could ever repay, because the forced service as a law man in Four Corners had turned Ezra's life around, had pushed him into something he would have fought tooth and claw otherwise. He had found something very permanent, something he had never known he needed.

"He doesn't expect a return, Ez," Chris added, apparently reading his mind again. "He did it in his capacity as a Section Judge, protecting his men."

"Against what?" he asked, mouth dry, the panic about to rise again.

And then Chris told him.

Something inside Ezra twisted sharply, the pit of dread growing with each word, each sentence, and by the end of it, his hands were clenched into the mattress.

"How dare she," he whispered harshly.

"It won't be a problem, Ezra."

"She… she went to a Section Judge! She went to a Board member!"

"Using her husband. Who won't be her husband much longer." There was a tone of vicious satisfaction in Chris' voice. "Maude made a grave mistake and she will pay."

"She… she went to a Judge…," Ezra stammered. "She… she played on getting me arrested! Jailed!"

"Won't happen."

"But now they know…"

"Travis always knew. His buddy couldn't care less. This is a Territory, Ezra."

The knot refused to unwind. His mind was stumbling over what he had heard, thoughts chasing each other until all he could hear was white noise. His head hurt, his eyes hurt, all of him was just one thick ball of emotional pain. Sending sensationalist articles to the local paper was one thing. Maude couldn't be sure Mary would print them, let alone that Chris Larabee didn't pull rank and stopped the paper.

But a Judge…

A Board member, too! She had gone to the highest Territory authority and told them… that her son was a crossbreed… a swindler, a con man, a criminal…

Chris suddenly pushed him onto his back on the mattress and settled over Ezra's hips in a smooth, practiced-looking move. Yellow eyes met green ones, boring down right into his very soul, chasing away the noise and the pain. It was like a switch had been flipped and the powerful sensation of his alpha with him, his mate, eased the panic. It turned into little more than a flutter of anxiety as muscles relaxed and Ezra exhaled sharply.

"She is not your family," Chris said, voice dark and rough, repeating the words from not so long ago. "She is nothing. She won't bother you or us again. Your criminal record is sealed. Your pardon is there for everyone to read. The past is the past. For all of us. You are Larabee pack, Ezra Standish. That's what counts. Nothing else. I won't let you torment yourself over a woman who holds no power in your life. Not anymore."

Ezra reached up and pulled the other man close with a hand around his neck. The kiss was reassuring, warm and deep.

"I'm still getting used to this," he murmured. "To have a Judge defend me… that's new."

"Travis is quite invested in this. In us."

"He is?"

It got him a terrifying smile, one that should have shaken him to the core but didn't. "He has friends in high places, too," Chris added almost conversationally. "A member of the Board of Legal and Regulatory Compliance isn't to be trifled with. Maude picked the wrong battle this time. She might be a player in a city, but not in a Territory."

Ezra just looked into those yellow eyes, studying the golden flecks reflected in there, and he finally nodded.

Chris had them scoot up further onto the mattress, nuzzling against Ezra's neck and throat, delivering tiny little bites.

"We're good, Ezra."

"I'm trying to believe it."

Chris nipped a little harder, the reddish mark barely visible. "We are."

They lay together, Ezra with his eyes closed, just feeling the powerful wolf next to him, hands brushing over his body, calm and sure. He felt tired and wide awake in one. Tired of the games played, the manipulation and the betrayal. When Maude had left he had wanted to believe this was it, but part of him had been apprehensive, waiting for that moment when she ruined this life for him.

Well, that moment had come.

And gone.

Hopefully it had been the final attempt to have Ezra come running back, crawling back…

He drew in a deep breath and released it slowly, like a breathing exercise, feeling the blood rush through his ears.

Chris was a silent, steady presence next to him.

He finally drew him close again and Ezra just let himself fall into the well of strength that was his alpha, his mate. He felt stronger himself, so much more than two years ago, and he knew he was drawing from the pack, from Chris, from his own sense of belonging.

They stayed like this for a long, long time. It was a kind of peaceful comfort, surrounding both men. Just them, no world outside their own.

xXxXxX

Larabee had to leave when it was time for the first hearing. Ezra hesitated only for a moment, then dressed appropriately and accompanied his alpha. The pack would function as security throughout all appointed times and dates, and Chris had the first one scheduled tonight.

xXxXxX

Nothing happened throughout the three hours and five hearings.

Thankfully.

Chris decided to have a pack meeting the next morning over breakfast, bring everyone up to speed concerning Maude soon-to-be-Standish-again.

xXxXxX

The reaction of the pack varied from outraged to disbelieving. Ezra was silent throughout, just nodding a few times, mostly sipping coffee and apparently trying to read his future in the dark liquid as he stared into it.

"Hell, Ezra," Buck said quietly when they through. "This really sucks. Hope that's the last we hear now, with the Judge on the case. They can get her with this, put her behind bars for good. Sorry, pard."

"You have nothing to apologize for."

"Still feeling like it."

Vin was a silent, supportive presence next to him, blue eyes offering what he always did: time alone to just share silence or talk. Ezra knew he would probably take him up on that.

Unless he had security detail duty for a hearing, that was.

xXxXxX

If Chris spent every night in his room throughout the Judge's stay, Ezra never commented on it. He was actually enjoying coming together at night, sharing bed space, body heat and a few times a lot more than that. Outside it had started to snow, the streets blanketed in white, sound muffled, the world becoming frozen and calmer. Sometimes he just watched it at night, Chris next to him, both men ensconced in comfortable silence.

Chris was a steady, reassuring rock in an emotionally stormy sea, the calmness in a category five, and if he was a little more alpha than usual, no one dared to point it out.

Aside from maybe Ezra Standish himself.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Travis stayed for a week, doing his job.

There was a minor shouting match throughout one hearing, which was quickly handled by Nathan and Josiah, who escorted the enraged parties into separate rooms.

The more serious incident was when their only severe case was put on trial. It wasn't just a hearing since the man accused of theft, robbery, kidnapping and murder was a wanted criminal already. Oleg Stark had spent the last week in the high security prison cell, going from absolutely silent and uncooperative to screaming like a lunatic and threatening whoever carried in the food or checked on him throughout the days and nights.

Stark had robbed a coach, had killed the driver, had then abducted a child, killing a ranch hand they had met on the way, stolen a horse, and then barricaded himself in an abandoned cabin. Buck and Vin had shot him, though it had been just a flesh wound, and freed the child. Stark had been treated and locked up since.

The man was wanted in three other Territories, two of which fell into Section Judge Travis' jurisdiction, and he had a warrant out from Denver, as well as Phoenix.

"Well-travelled," as Josiah had remarked.

So Travis would handle the Territory matter, acting on behalf of Portland Territory, then Stark would be handed over to the Marshalls. Portland had been arguing that the man be given into their jurisdiction, but to no avail.

Travis made it a rather quick trial, especially with the looming evidence and the witness accounts.

That was when Stark lost it. Handcuffed as he was he suddenly turned from calm and disinterested into a raging berserker. He was a mountain of a man, even taller than Buck, built like a brick wall, and with the behavior of a bulldozer.

Chris had been the one on duty, together with JD, and he had kept a close eye on the murderer, puzzling over the man's demeanor. He had been switching from one mood to the next, sometimes grinning like a mad man, sometimes not even showing a single emotion.

"Like a sociopath," Ezra had remarked once. "Absolutely detached. Disassociated from what he has done."

And he would switch moods at the drop of a hat.

Like now.

With a roar he turned over the table, the clattering sound loud in the otherwise rather quiet room. People gave exclamations of surprise, jumping from their chairs.

There was suddenly a knife in the man's hand and Chris smelled blood as the knife found a target. Him. Stark was lunging for where Travis sat, who had been quickly pushed back by JD, and he grabbed the man before he could reach the Judge.

The knife bit into his thigh, the pain sharp and brief. Chris snarled, then was backhanded by hands that were as big as a shovel before Stark pushed him off, trying for the judge again.

Chris would have nothing of it.

He was stronger than his slender build would suggest and he was a lot more resilient than Oleg Stark might think.

And he went for the legs.

Chris' boot connected with the man's left knee, hard enough to draw an audible crack, and Stark yelled in pain, crashing. Chris followed with another kick to the small of his back, the howl more than telling.

JD was there, stomping on Stark' handcuffed wrists, drawing another yell, but the man was still raging on, trying to buck off Chris, who was kneeling on his back to keep him on the wooden floor.

Still, it was all over in minutes.

Especially when Chris slugged the man with the handle of his gun and Stark fell unconscious.

Sitting back, breathing hard, one hand clutching his cut thigh, the alpha let out a curse. His head throbbed from the blow.

"Where the hell did he get that knife from?" Chris snarled, eyes furious, looking at JD.

The sheriff shook his head. "I frisked him before we came here. He had nothing on him, I swear, Chris!"

Buck was pushing through the people that were still gathered in the room. "You okay, pard?"

"Fine," Chris growled and got to his feet, suppressing a wince. There was blood all over his black pants. The knife had gone deep, but not too deep to be worrisome. "Judge?"

"I'm okay, Chris. Get that leg looked at," Travis replied evenly, eyes on the unconscious criminal at their feet. He didn't seem all too rattled. Things like that happened throughout hearings and trials sometimes, especially out here..

"Buck, JD, get that scumbag back into his cell!" Larabee ordered. "Then find out where the fuck he got that knife from!" He looked at the gathered onlookers. "Everyone who has no business being here: out!"

There was some scrambling as people obeyed, reacting to the rumble that had accompanied the words. You just didn't disobey the alpha of the Larabee pack when he was issuing orders.

It took a few minutes, then Chris was alone with Travis, though that lasted barely half a minute because Nathan was charging in, medical bag in hand. Larabee rolled his eyes.

"Don't give me that," Jackson huffed. "Sit. Let me look at that leg."

"Yes, sir," Chris muttered, which got him a narrow-eyed look.

Travis stood to the side, silently watching as Nathan cut into the jean leg, then inspected the wound and cleaned it quickly.

"Didn't go deep, but I'll have to apply stitches until healing kicks in. Should be okay by tomorrow, but I don't want it to scar."

Chris scrubbed a hand over his face. "Sure."

"Clinic," Nathan simply ordered.

Travis clapped Chris on the shoulder. "Go. We're done for today anyway. I need a drink, then another, and maybe a good meal afterwards."

So Larabee limped after Nathan, still furious about what had happened and his mind working just as furiously on who might have slipped the knife to their prisoner.

xXxXxX

It took barely ten minutes to treat the leg wound, put in five neat stitches, and apply the bandage, but since his pants were now a total loss, Chris had to wait for someone to get him replacements. He didn't want to parade around half naked. Some of the townspeople might enjoy the sight, but right now he wasn't in the mood. Nor did he want to shift and trot around on four paws.

"How's the head?" Nathan asked, inspecting the bruise on Chris' cheekbone.

"Still attached. I'm okay. No double vision, no dizziness."

Nathan chuckled. "Good. Wolves have hard heads."

It was Ezra who came by with a new pair of pants half an hour into his stay at the clinic. His eyes fell on the bruise and then the bandaged leg, brows rising quizzically.

"I'm fine. Any word on the knife?"

"Not yet. JD is raising hell right now. I think he's channeling you." Ezra twitched a little smile. "I know he searched Stark, made sure he didn't even have a safety pin or a tack on him. Buck thinks someone from the audience worked with the guy, slipped him the knife. He and Josiah are rounding everyone up, talking to the townsfolk who was there. They can tell us who wasn't from around here."

Chris bit back another wince as he shuffled into the jeans. "Travis is rescheduling the trial and it'll be just Stark and us with him. If I have to strip him naked, I will."

Ezra chuckled. "That'll be a sight."

"Take it easy on that leg," Nathan called after his retreating alpha.

Chris just gave him a wave of acknowledgement.

They headed over to the Judge's temporary office. Travis raised his eyebrows when the two regulators entered.

"Shouldn't you be resting that leg?"

"The leg's fine. I want to know how Stark got that knife."

"I think your men are already on it. And I'm just about to head for something to eat after the whole scuffle. Care to join me, gentlemen?"

Chris cast a look at his mate, saw the slightly wary expression in the green eyes. But Ezra didn't protest. He knew the crossbreed wouldn't give the Judge the slightest opening or show weakness by turning down the invitation.

::Ez?::

::Free lunch? Sure:: was the bland reply, without much enthusiasm.

Chris gave him an amused look. Food was generally free. Ezra just smiled humorlessly in return. Travis watched them silently, probably aware of a lot more happening than what he was privy to.

So a late lunch it was.

tbc...


	25. Chapter 25

They found the one responsible for the knife by nightfall. It had been a matter of looking for out of towners first, talking to those who had been seen at the trial. Josiah arrested a woman by the name of Hilla Smith, who had come by coach a day prior to the trial, and who had tried to leave with the late evening coach again. She had only been discovered because she had made a fuss about not getting a ticket, throwing a tantrum, and finally threatening the station's office clerk with a knife.

A knife that was a twin to the one Stark had used.

"Sister," Josiah told the assembled pack as they shared drinks and snacks in the saloon. In JD's case the 'snack' was a gigantic serving of nachos covered in cheese, peppers and minced meat. "Poor misguided woman. She firmly believes her brother was set up, that someone is out to ruin him, and that she is his savior."

"Travis will have one more hearing then," Buck commented.

Chris nodded darkly. Stark' trial was set for tomorrow morning, early in the day, and the man would be found guilty, he knew. Marshalls were already heading for Four Corners to collect the man, to take him to Denver, because penalties were not served or carried out in Territories. Hilla would be on a separate transport, awaiting her own sentence. She would most likely spend a long time in prison or a psychiatric ward.

JD shoveled nachos into his mouth and Chris wondered where their youngest pack member put all that food. Buck was already a bottomless well, but JD beat him to that title by now.

"At least it's all over for now," the sheriff remarked after he had swallowed down his food. "Just have to clean out the cells and I can finally have some peace and quiet."

"Except for George," Vin chuckled.

George Fisher was notoriously broke and kept sinking whatever pennies he earned into liquor, which resulted in him either passing out drink in the middle of the road or becoming a major nuisance. JD usually locked him up until he was sober, only to have the whole thing repeat itself the next time he came into some cash.

"Yeah," JD sighed. "But he's a light weight to take care of compared to what else we had lately."

Chris had to agree. He was glad that the reputation of the Larabee pack was fierce, close to mythical and legendary sometimes, with tall tales and terrifying warnings not to cross the Fenris in charge of the pack or else. Fewer criminals tried their luck hiding in his Territory and a lot less crimes occurred. Gangs gave them a wide berth, unless they were stupid and/or too full of themselves, convinced what they had heard about the place was nothing but old wives tales.

Inez brought another round of beers, much to Buck's joy, but she ignored his jovial comments as usual. It was a game those two played and both enjoyed the status quo. Buck wasn't looking forward to a relationship with Inez and Inez wasn't interested in anything more serious than flirting either. It was an arrangement that served them both well.

Chris finally got up and left, heading a last round through town before he caught some sleep. The leg barely bothered him any more and he knew he could take out the stitches by tomorrow. The worst had been the loss of a perfectly good pair of jeans.

Oh well.

And didn't those thoughts sound almost like Ezra talking?

He grinned to himself as he walked along the closed or closing businesses, nodding to the men and women crossing his path. The colorful lights of the Yule festivities were still up, brightening the dusk. When he reached the livery at the end of the main road, Chris felt something prickle along his senses and he stopped, eyes on the darkening town around him. There was a soft yip and he turned quickly, coming face to face with a red fox perched on a stack of hay bales.

Ezra. Ezra was in his fox shape! shot through his head.

And he was looking smug as hell about it somehow. Sure, it was the red fox, not his true first form, but Chris was secretly delighted to see the other man shifted. He grinned all of a sudden, stepped forward and grabbed the furry head, planting a kiss on it. The fur was thicker than summer, giving him a more fluffy look.

"Nice to see you, Ez," he laughed.

The fox huffed and it sounded annoyed, ears flicking.

He laughed more and shook his head.

"Stretching your legs? All of them?"

::In a way:: came the suddenly cheeky reply. ::Interested?::

::Always:: he replied in kind. ::You know it'll rip the stitches and Nathan will start yelling::

::You can always stretch your legs in human form::

::And watch you run in circles around me? Nope::

::Then you don't really have a choice::

Chris scratched is mate's head. Ezra leaned into the scratches, then caught himself and grumbled a little. Chris smiled and tugged at one ear. Ezra flicked the ear in annoyance.

"You might have to bail me out with Nathan later," Larabee teased.

::He might never even know about this. My lips are sealed:: There was a devilish glint in the green eyes.

xXxXxX

The stitches did rip, but no blood flowed. It stung a little and itched as fur replaced naked skin, but Chris couldn't care less. His clothes were hidden in the livery and the black wolf sauntered off without a limp, following the crossbreed fox of his pack.

Ezra was almost bouncy, nipping at Chris thick fur, then running off into the night. Chris gave chase. Ezra was running full speed, darting between the rocks and bushes, the Fenris in full pursuit.

When Chris finally caught up with him, tackling the slick shadow, they both tumbled through the undergrowth and he finally pinned down his mate, laughing-

::Already giving up?::

::Didn't want you to stress your wounds, alpha:: was the teasing reply. ::Nathan would have your head::

::I thought you would protect me:: Chris replied.

Ezra snapped playfully at him and Chris licked over the red head. They tussled some more, then finally plonked down, tongues lolling, pleasantly worn out.

::I'd always protect you:: Ezra drawled and grinned at him.

::I feel so much safer now::

A light snow was starting to fall around them, covering the ground like a layer of sugar dust. It was only a matter of days now, Chris knew from past winter seasons.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

By the end of Travis' visit the first snow had thickly blanketed the mountains and was not merely dusting the tree tops any more. Two days of thickly falling flakes had dumped a lot of the whiteness everywhere. The townspeople were busy keeping the main street free for travel and snow was piling up high left and right. Everyone was dressed thickly against the crisp, biting cold.

Unlike certain shifters.

Josiah, while bundled up, didn't look cold at all, and Buck animated JD to shift and romp through the snow with him. Chris watched it from time to time, amusement in his eyes. Ezra refused to leave the warmth of a heated room unless he had patrol, and even then he only left after a lengthy complaint.

"Seems like you finally worked it out, son," the Judge remarked as he said his good-byes to the Larabee pack's alpha.

Chris raised an eyebrow. He, like everyone, was dressed for the cold, the thick coat helping against the biting wind that ripped down the main road. The alpha didn't look cold, though.

A private, heated coach had been reserved for Travis to take him to Corner Crossing train station, outside the Territory, since the Protection Act stopped the railroad from crossing through.

"I didn't think you and Mr. Standish would ever come to an understanding. I actually would have bet on him not even lasting that first year. After a few months I thought he would see it through only to get his pardon." Travis smirked. "I was wrong."

Larabee grunted. "Seems like it."

"I'm not just talking about his criminal record."

The blond raised an eyebrow, eyes suddenly harder than before, more intense, reflecting the wolf.

"This is a pack matter, Judge," he said, sounding respectful, but there was a warning in his words.

Travis nodded, studying the guarded features, taking note of the subtle warning from the alpha that even a human like him could pick up.

"Glad it's all settled then."

Larabee dipped his head a little, eyes back on the street, keeping watch. There was hardly anyone out and about. It was too cold and too early in the day. The lead gray sky promised more snow and it was already drizzling down a little. Today would be one of those semi-light days where no sun came out and people preferred to stay inside. It was one of those days the regulators would be pretty busy because drinks flowed a little too freely and tempers flared.

The coach finally drew up to the station and Travis walked over, snow crunching underneath his boots. His bags were already being loaded.

"Take care, Chris."

"You, too, Judge. See you next time."

Travis climbed into the warm coach, almost sighing at the comfortable interior compared to the ghastly outside. Chris remained on the sidewalk, waiting until the coach started moving, then he continued on his way; wherever that was.

Yes, Orrin Travis had known about Ezra P. Standish, the clever and shrewd crossbreed with a criminal record a mile long. He had watched him in the new pack, had seen him grow, had seen Chris grow closer. Even without pack knowledge, without being a shifter, he knew what those two had become.

Good for him, he mused.

Good for the pack.

They were strong, settled deeply within the Territory, and Four Corners had quickly become one of the safest ones in his Section. The Board knew it as well as Travis, so the leaked information about Ezra's heritage had had no impact.

He leaned back into the comfortable seats as the coach headed for the train station.

tbc...


	26. Chapter 26

Dusk had fallen over the town. The last light had disappeared an hour ago and by now the dark was quickly coming in. Only half an hour after sundown, only the street lamps shed any light. Some houses still had Yule lights up, with the Rosewood standing out because Rose had decorated colorful paper stars in each window, lighting them up with small light bulbs. It looked incredible and always drew children and adults alike to gaze at the display.

Ezra sat under the wooden awning of Potter's Hardware, watching thick, fat flakes of snow drift from the darkness above him, landing in the already so very silent streets. The snow was coming down in a light, almost ethereal shower. There was no one on the roads, there was no one in the woods, and there was no one stupid enough to go out of town in this weather, at this time of night.

Everything seemed to be wrapped in a fluffy blanket, the snow mostly undisturbed as people had sought the warmth of their houses as the heavy snow fall had come in the late afternoon.

Evening patrol had been a solitary affair. He had actually enjoyed it, checking in on Vin, who had night shift at the sheriff station. The Mark brothers were currently locked up in there, after starting a fight in the saloon. It had been the usual reason: money.

Michael was the farmer of the two, the one who had inherited the farm and the animals. Robert was the brainy one, had been at a prestigious city college, had a degree in agriculture, and had a ton of money from his consultation work. Both never saw eye to eye. Michael was a hard worker, someone who knew the land and how to handle the farm. Robert was all theory and no hands-on experience, and he liked to talk about how much money he had and how little his brother was making.

So it had come to blows.

Vin had dragged them both to jail, locking them up to give the Marks time to cool down. They had been screaming at each other for a while, but now there was silence.

Ezra made his rounds around their small town. His footprints were already filling in with new snow and by tomorrow there would be a lot to shovel out of the streets and off the roofs again.

Bundled up against the cold that didn't bother him as much as he let on, Ezra let the silence envelop him. He was listening for possible trouble, alert in case anyone was trying something illicit tonight, but winter was usually a time where the crime rate dropped. No one liked to hang around in the cold.

A cold patrolled by the Larabee pack.

Exhaling softly, breath clouding in front of his eyes, Ezra pushed up from his seat and went on another round, sharp eyes on the silent houses and businesses. The windows were dark, the doors locked and bolted. No one was skulking around, no one was trying anything. It was a nice change from those nights where he scared of a few teens lurking in a corner, or hauled some drunk cowhand off to sober up in a cell. Now and then new-arrivals turned out to be crooks or criminals, attempting a break or trying to steal horses.

Not in winter, though.

When he finally walked back into the sheriff station, Vin looked up from his book.

"Nothing happening, I guess," the tracker remarked.

"Silent night," Ezra quipped as he stomped over to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug-full.

"Same here. They're either pouting or sleeping." Vin grinned. "Got it from here."

Ezra stretched and sipped his coffee. He spent the next minutes watching the snow through the window, keeping Vin company. Vin had returned to his book, already mostly through. He finally left the other man to his night shift and the last chapters in his favored crime novel series.

Chris was standing in the street just outside the sheriff station, a mass of black fur and golden eyes, a light dusting of snow settling on the thick pelt. Ezra grinned at the sight and was very tempted to flick a few flakes off the alpha's nose. Anyone else would probably have wet himself, seeing the massive black wolf in the middle of the night. Chris was a sight to behold and he still scared even those townspeople who had seen him plenty times already in his shifted form. Ezra had witnessed it countless times, even in Mary, who couldn't suppress a very human reaction when faced with an apex predator. Fear. Not just startled. It was fear.

::To what do I owe the honor, dear sir?:: he teased.

Chris joined him as they walked along the street, each tread almost silent. He left huge paw prints in the snow, but they disappeared quickly again, swallowed by the fresh flakes coming from above.

::Thought I'd see you safely home:: he replied, laughter in his voice.

::Why, I am honored, Mr. Larabee. Whatever would I do should a miscreant try to rob my person?::

::You'd talk them to death, Ezra::

::You flatter me::

Chris bumped his head playfully against Ezra's hip and Ezra's hand brushed over the thickly furred head. He tugged at one ear, mirroring what Chris had done so long ago when Ezra had been in his shifted fox form. The Fenris snapped at the offending fingers, dangerously sharp teeth closing harmlessly over the gloved fingers.

::Do not for one minute believe I will see this as an invitation to frolick through this abominable snow:: Ezra told him firmly, limb still caught in the wolf jaws.

The alpha chuckled and released him. ::I would never::

Ezra raised his eyebrows, still walking toward his place. Chris didn't push, simply walked along, and when they climbed the back stairs of the saloon, entering through a door that was only for personnel and Ezra's use, he shifted smoothly. He seemed barely bothered by the cold, though there were goosebumps. The dark blond hair hung heavily on his head, weighed down by the melting snow, and he ran careless fingers through it.

Unsurprisingly, Chris's clothes were in Ezra's room. As were some more personal things. In the past months stuff had… migrated. Toiletries, books, assorted clothes and another pair of boots. Just like the owner of said stuff had migrated, too. Larabee didn't sleep here every night, and he spent days away in his cabin, but it was a lot more than before… before the storm. Before getting to know Ezra as who and what he was.

Ezra in turn found he didn't mind. Those past months had changed something in him, for him. It felt like a last step had been taken, signing and dealing what had started over two years ago. It closed a chapter in his life forever, opening a new one, opening a new path that he was only too willing to take. Saying what they were to each other out loud seemed to have flipped a switch. They were more open around each other, showed affection to a degree, everyone else be damned. Chris didn't kiss him senseless in public, but they would be close, would touch in a more intimate manner.

And he had seen the change in the behavior of those people around them; around the pack. The pack had known, hadn't been surprised. Maybe people in town had known, too, but now it was out in the open.

Chris watched him, those eyes still glowing and inhuman, but so very much Chris. Ezra hung up his coat, then slipped out of the winter boots and started to undress. The watchful eyes dimmed slowly, turning human, and he closed the distance to chase a little kiss across the other man's lips.

They made it into the nice, warm bed, under the covers, and Ezra smiled as Chris cuddled close to him. The man was a cuddler, even if he would deny it with his dying breath. Running his fingers through the still slightly damp hair, he drew a murmur of appreciation from the alpha. Ezra pressed a kiss to his forehead, then his nose.

Outside it was snowing heavily now, thick enough to make tomorrow one of those days where shoveling snow was all people did until midday. Nothing and no one would go in or out of Four Corners, unless it was a dire emergency, and knowing Josiah and Buck they would patrol in their shifted forms to enjoy the winter wonderland.

Chris ran calloused fingers over Ezra's side, coming to rest on the white lines that was all that had remained of the attack. His thumb caressed over the thickest one, then the hand stilled, warm and heavy on his ribcage. Ezra just closed his eyes with a contented sigh.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"You should head out for a few days."

Chris glanced at his second-in-command as Vin shuffled through his cards. Both men were in the saloon, playing an easy hand, keeping an eye on the evening crowd. With the change of the weather and the season, more people were coming in. Some seasonal workers, some just now able to get from their farms to the nearest town.

"Head out," he echoed.

"Yep. Way out."

He raised his brows.

"Not just the cabin."

Chris left the brows up. Tanner grinned.

"You and Ez. Just go," he told him in his laid-back, easy manner. "We got this."

Chris chuckled, playing a card. "Don't doubt it."

"I think Ez needs some time away from here, to clear his head."

"You think?"

There was an eloquent shrug. "Sometimes a run isn't enough. He might think he's a city boy, but he's a shifter first. After what happened lately, he could use some air. Instincts are a bitch."

Larabee lowered his brows a little, but Vin only smiled at him.

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah." Of course he did.

Chris had noticed how recent events had gotten to Ezra, even if his mate didn't say a word. He had been careful lately, had looked over his shoulder more often, even though nothing had happened. No one in town treated him like they thought he was an abomination and should be chased away or worse. If someone knew he was a crossbreed, no one came forward.

But Ezra couldn't not be suspicious, ever since Travis had dropped the latest bomb.

Nothing had come of that in any way. The Judge got Chris' regular reports and when Larabee had inquired about any changes, he had simply told him that everything was running smoothly, with no hiccups. No one on the Board was out for Ezra's head, or the pack's dismissal as regulators.

"Go ahead. Pack. Weather's good enough."

"You got a feeling?"

Vin smirked, then tipped his head and walked off. Chris laughed. Yeah, the Territory protector had a feeling. He didn't really want to know, just head out of here, take Ezra with him. They needed some time alone, he was sure of it. A long patrol ride sounded just like fine. As pack alpha it was his duty to be seen outside regular patrol routes, which meant the heart of the Territory, too.

Chris folded his cards and rose from the chair. He gave the other man a brief nod and Vin just gathered up all the cards to shuffle them.

xXxXxX

Ezra's expression of misgiving and annoyance was expected and almost comical. Chris knew his mate was putting up an act, that he did what was expected of him, which was complain about leaving his comfortable bed and spend three nights minimum on the trail, in the wild, without any creature comforts.

"At least we're taking horses," he grumbled as he packed his bags.

"Unless you don't want to," Chris teased.

Clear outrage shone in the green eyes. "You, my dear sir, are walking a fine line already!"

Larabee laughed and shook his head, patiently waiting as Ezra went through his clothes, trying to decide what to take.

It was show.

Clear and simple.

Because in the end all the fancy stuff stayed in the drawers and closet, Ezra had a small riding bag tightly bound, and he was dressed in his less flashy jeans and light brown coat. Gloves, scarf and hat were donned, then they were on their way to the stables.

Each horse was already saddled and there was enough food in the saddlebags to last them a while. Since Chris was also counting on a hunt or two, in either form, he wasn't worried about going hungry.

tbc...


	27. Chapter 27

They had been riding in silence for a while now, enjoying the good weather and the sun, eyes on the land around them. Out here, no sign of settlers or hunters showed. A few dared to enter the heart of the Territory on a regular basis, but they chose the early summer times for those trips. It was the safest time of the year. Too many had become lost, some forever, as they tried to best nature on her terms throughout the other seasons.

Spring was prone to sudden weather changes, even within minutes. Summer was an incredibly hot affair this deep inside Four Corners Territory, and winter was simply a too treacherous time. Snow could turn a traveler around and around until they simply gave up, exhausted.

Chris had had to rescue a few of those adventurous types, and every guide or trapper in town refused to lead even the most wealthy of visitors in winter.

Coming out here this early in spring had been based on reviewing the weather situation, their travel route and Vin's take on the matter. He was a pretty good judge of what to expect and since neither Chris nor Ezra planned to go over the mountain pass to the other side of the Territory where it bordered to Beacon Hills, they would be on the safe side.

xXxXxX

It took them almost a day to reach their first stop. Their pace was sedate, the horses moving at an easy gait. Chris kept assessing his surroundings, but there was no threat, either human or from nature. Even the occasional winter storm hadn't been as devastating as the Centennial had been.

Their stop was a basic shelter and Ezra looked at it with a bright smile and a mischievous light in his eyes. A shelter meant a bed and the bed meant not sleeping on the ground.

Chris simply shook his head, amused. "Only for tonight," he told his mate.

"We could make it work for a few more."

It was almost reminiscent of the ERSS, though less sturdy and more of a hut. They had heat, which was a plus, and the bed, but no running water or electricity.

Chris pointed that out with a knowing smile and Ezra rolled his eyes.

They unsaddled the horses and had moved their things inside within a short time. It was still cold outside at night and the shelter was a welcome luxury.

xXxXxX

That the bed was actually barely wide enough to accommodate two men was of little consequence. There was hardly any room between them anyway as Chris pushed into the willing body, felt Ezra clench tightly around him, fingers digging into muscular arms. He looked into the green eyes, pupils blown wide, and Chris captured the moist lips, kissing his mate deeply.

xXxXxX

They lay together afterwards, bodies almost overheated, enjoying the afterglow, and Larabee nuzzled against the short hair at Ezra's neck.

::I love you::

Ezra answered with a hard kiss, reflecting those emotions quite clearly. "Mine," he murmured.

"Always."

Chris rested his hand over the four white scars on Ezra's side, protective and possessive in one, and Ezra nuzzled against the damp throat, leaving tiny bites against it.

His alpha rumbled softly, shifting a little as arousal coursed through him. Ezra grinned.

"Adventurous," Chris whispered.

"You know me."

"Only too well." He pushed himself up and looked into the green eyes. Eyes that were alight with emotions.

Chris dove into the next kiss, very willing to give in to Ezra's demands.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

They went past the invisible border drawn on almost all maps and into the true heart of the Territory by midday the next day. As of now, there was no route to follow. Now it was instinct and letting the land take them to their next stopping point. Except for the most hardy of trackers and hunters, no one really went this deeply into the Territory. No one had tried to settle here, no one wanted to stay too long.

The ley lines were running together, forming nodes, making technology completely superfluous or absolutely useless because the devices were erratic or broke down. Nothing worked out here, not even a basic radio signal. Towers that had been erected along this border were prone to interference, especially after storms, and there was an unwritten rule about not venturing out here alone.

Chris had accompanied Vin a few times, and all Seven had skirted the border quite a lot. Sometimes Buck and JD would come along, JD trying out a new device, but it would fail, as every time.

Ezra's eyes were alert, scanning the horizon, on the look-out for anything at all that might be dangerous.

"Nothing's going to jump us," Chris told him an hour into their otherwise silent ride.

"How would you know?"

"Vin and I have been here often enough. Vin's told me a few things, explained some more. All that's different from what we know is that the ley lines scramble the tech. It's why the Men of the Land live here, away from us."

"So we're intruding," Ezra sighed, shaking his head.

"No. My pack is not seen as intruders." There was a slight edge to Chris' voice. "The land accepts us."

Ezra nodded slowly. He knew. Vin and him had talked about it often enough. "It feels different here," he said after a while.

Yes, it did. Chris could feel it in his very bones, the call to his shifter side, the way he was more at ease, despite the strangeness, and how it felt like home. The pack was at home in the Territory and each member felt it, but out here, with no interference, with nothing to distract him, Chris sensed it all the more.

"Vin says it calls to one," Ezra voiced those feelings. "The few times we passed along the border I knew what he meant, but now… it's stronger than I ever felt it before."

"It's always this strong, Ez. You just didn't want to feel it."

"Are you channeling Mr. Tanner?" he teased. "Because he sounds just like that. Almost the same words, too."

Chris smirked.

Some people were sensitive to these strong energies, other had never felt a thing in their life. Those with a sensitivity were usually freaked out and kept away from the heart of a Territory. Ezra didn't feel freaked out, but he could tell there were tiny shifts around him, like water moving back and forth in a pond.

xXxXxX

They made camp while the sun was still over the horizon, seeking out a protected area near water. The little stream looked peaceful enough and they had trees and rocks sheltering them. Chris unsaddled the horses near the river while Ezra made up their little camp.

"Feel like running?" the alpha asked softly when they were done.

Ezra felt something shiver through him. He could feel the call, the sense of calmness he had out here, despite the fact that he was in the middle of nowhere. A place he didn't know, unlike Four Corners. Chris seemed to be almost bouncing on the balls of his feet, eager to shift and run, and Ezra couldn't deny that he wanted the same. His alpha's energy was infectious. Seeing the other man so unburdened, so free of his responsibilities, of having to be the leader all the time, was liberating in turn.

He nodded.

Chris' smile was open and happy, and the black wolf looked more like an overgrown puppy as he impatiently waited for his mate to follow him in changing shape.

Ezra undressed, meticulously folded his clothes, and shifted into his gray fox form. Chris playfully licked over one dark ear, yellow eyes alight and filled with playful teasing.

The fox darted off.

The wolf followed with a happy rumbling huff.

xXxXxX

Ezra gave in to the pull inside him halfway throughout the chase. He unfurled his wings seemingly out of nowhere and took off. He heard Chris' yip of delight and let the winds take him high, angling his wings to swoop down again, evading teasingly snapping jaws as the Fenris jumped and tried to catch him.

Their game continued, the black shape racing over the ground and following the gray fox as Ezra flew easy, almost lazy circles, until he landed and was bowled over by his mate.

On his back, wings spread out underneath him, tongue lolling, Ezra looked into the black face, saw nothing but pure enjoyment and happiness. He batted at the black snout and Chris retaliated with a wet lick over his face. He playfully caught the offending paw between sharp teeth and Ezra countered with his still free paw.

Chris let go and nuzzled against him, tongue bathing him, and Ezra wriggled, pushing out from underneath the Fenris. Chris let him, watched him shake the dust and sand out of his wings.

Ezra sat down on his haunches, wings properly folded, and tilted his head. There was a mischievous grin on his lips. Chris simply huffed and trotted over to a grassy spot, plopping gracefully down. Ezra chuckled and joined him, let the Fenris lay his head on the winged back.

::Addict:: he murmured.

Chris snuffled and buried his muzzle in the feathers.

They stayed like this for a while, watching the shadows grow longer, and when the waning light turned toward night, both knew it was time to return to their camp site.

Ezra didn't fly, actually let the wings disappear, and both listened to the night around them, for anything out of the ordinary.

Nothing stood out.

xXxXxX

They curled up in their shifted forms, not bothering to become human.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Leaving the horses in a makeshift corral with access to water, Chris and Ezra continued to run in their shifted forms, enjoying the freedom and the different sensory perception. Ezra flew more than he ever had before in his life and if he silently whooped to himself, there was no one there to hear it.

Aside from his alpha.

Who didn't mention the noises of joy or the open happiness Ezra radiated.

Chris himself was just watching him with the same happiness and a lot of delight.

xXxXxX

No one witnessed the gray, winged fox in the air, except a few startled birds and the occasional reptile or lizard.

xXxXxX

Chris felt incredibly at home, free, the weight of the world suddenly off his shoulders. For now he was just the wolf, the man in love with Ezra Standish. And Ezra showed him just what he was capable of.

He shifted.

Into different forms.

And Chris watched in awe and fascination, encouraged him to shift to whatever he wanted, and Ezra did.

They were free out here. There was no pressure, no expectations, no past, no future. Just the present.

"You're an amazing man, Ezra Standish," he whispered against his mate's lips when they were both human, laying near the river and enjoying the dry, cool weather. Sun on their skin, nothing between them.

Ezra's smile was open, no shields hiding the crossbreed from Chris' eyes, and his light-hearted caresses spoke lengths.

Their time together was simply just them. It wasn't just about sex, though they easily found together, uncaring of the world around them, and while outsiders might have expected Chris to mark his mate over and over, it wasn't about that. Yes, there were marks of passion on both men, but just touching freely, reaffirming the connection they shared, was so much more important.

No one would take this from him.

No one would make Ezra hide who he was, what he was, or hurt him over his genetic difference.

Rocking into the welcoming heat, feeling Ezra clench around him, listening to his soft encouragements and groans as Chris hit the right spot, Larabee let himself just be. He felt the land around him, his Territory, and everything that came with it. His very soul was connected to the land now, just as Vin had always told him they were. The pack was part of this.

He came hard, whispering Ezra's name into the kiss, felt Ezra's blunt fingernails dig into his hips. He lowered himself onto the muscular form, still rocking gently, enjoying the wet heat, the heave of their chests, their hearts hammering.

"Damn, Ez," he murmured.

Ezra chuckled and drew him close, lips playfully nipping at Chris'. Strong arms came around him, pillowing his head against one shoulder. Warm skin, Ezra's scent, the soft breath against his hair, it all made him relax even further. He felt incredibly content. Safe and content.

The embrace tightened briefly and Ezra nuzzled his hair. He trailed his fingers over the naked skin within his reach, all comfortable heat and well-known scent.

"Good?"

Chris grunted softly. He was good. Better than good. He felt amazing.

Ezra smiled happily.

tbc...


	28. Chapter 28

Both never moved too close to the mountains. They were still heavily covered in snow and not safe to travel. The mountain range was the natural border to Beacon Hills Territory, but no roads or rails connected the two Territories. To reach the town of Beacon Hills one had to either dare the mountain pass or take a long detour around the range. That usually took up to a week.

Chris wasn't interested in crossing borders of that kind anyway. Regulators took care of their matters, weren't politicians or ambassadors, and Four Corners was enough trouble sometimes.

They returned to the make-shift corral late in the evening, past nightfall, and neither bothered to shift back.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

The raven sitting on an old, fallen tree had Chris come alert, slow the horse down, and finally he stopped a few feet away.

The bird wasn't an unusual sight. Ravens and other birds were common enough, but this one had his hair stand on end. It wasn't too large, nor was it colored oddly. It was a raven, clear and simple, and then again… not.

It watched the two riders approach, not the least bit disturbed by their presence, and it tilted its head almost quizzically.

Chris glanced at Ezra and noticed his companion was just as alert as he was, maybe even slightly more tense. The green eyes held a hard to interpret look, slightly narrowed, suspicious, and the crossbreed was ready for just about anything.

The tension rose by the second as the two riders and the bird watched each other. Chris tried not to growl, but it was harder than usual to keep the Fenris side in check. He felt threatened without actually perceiving a threat as such.

The raven suddenly took off without so much as a caw and it disappeared quickly. Ezra shot his alpha a quizzical look. Chris kept scanning the sky, eyes narrowed, feeling something that he couldn't put a finger on.

Like they were being watched.

Like the whole energy of the place had changed.

It had been like this before, when he and Vin had travelled to meet Kojay and the tribe, but this was so much more intense, so much more focused, as if every living thing was now taking an interest.

The Fenris snarled softly, surprising himself by his so very intense reaction.

::Chris?::

He pulled himself together and glanced at his mate. Ezra's expression was carefully guarded.

"Shall we go on or take this as a warning?" Ezra asked softly, voice calm and even, though he was anything but calm.

He felt it, too, Chris knew.

The tense set to the narrow shoulders was evidence enough.

"Not sure it was really a warning. More like a first contact," Chris said.

Not like there was a lot of contact between the indigenous people of the Territory and those who had come later. Vin knew the nomadic tribe that lived here. He dropped by wherever they had set up now and then, knowing instinctively where to find them. The Men of the Land usually stayed within one Territory, hardly ever crossing into another one, even if no other tribe frequented the area. Beacon Hills had no Men, but Portland was home to at least two tribes, Larabee knew. Chris had accompanied Vin a few times, had met with Kojay and Chanu, but it was a reserved, distant relationship. There was mutual respect, but no attempt of a closer relationship.

Kojay, the tribe's elder, accepted the regulators, the Larabee pack, and with his acceptance, the whole tribe had. No one from his people had ever come to town, no one had ever approached a farm or ranch, and rarely did any of them ever interact with trappers or hunters.

"The elder's impressed," Vin had once told him. "By you, 'cause you're a Fenris. And the pack, 'cause they're diverse and you lead them."

"Didn't look like it."

It had gotten him a grin. The Men of the Land weren't a very emotional, outgoing people when it came to strangers, though Vin said they were perfectly sociable and friendly once they had accepted you into their family. Chris would have to take the other man's word for it. So far he hadn't seen a single twitch of a smile or a welcoming gesture.

"You want to continue or should we detour?" Ezra asked, breaking into his thoughts.

Chris studied the landscape, found nothing threatening or amiss, but the sense of something waiting out there wasn't gone. It was growing stronger with each passing minute and he found he didn't like it. It was an intrusion into his privacy, into their connection, and he was protective of it. Extremely.

"We're not looking for trouble," he finally said, as much to Ezra as he did to whoever was listening.

High above them a bird of prey was circling lazily.

Chris waited, listening, all senses open, and he felt another surge of whatever was hidden beneath the peaceful land.

The bird of prey cried briefly, then banked away, becoming a tiny spec as it aimed for the mountains.

"I think your cabin might be a nice enough retreat," Ezra murmured, sounding a little spooked.

Larabee chuckled. "You don't see this as an invitation to stay a little longer?"

"Only if we keep out of there," was the uneasy reply, Ezra nodding toward the heart of the Territory. "I enjoyed our time, but I don't need to push deeper into the unknown."

The horses were calm enough, showing no fear. Chris only had this sense of something watching, waiting for their decision, and Ezra felt absolutely unwell.

::It's our Territory, too:: Larabee threw in.

::Yeah, I know. But who would be stupid enough to try and settle out here? Run from the law, sure, but we usually catch them before they do something more idiotic::

Chris nodded slowly. ::You can feel it, too::

::I feel something. I don't like it. It's not… dangerous, but… invasive:: Ezra said slowly.

Yes, that was the best description. Invasive. It was curious about the Fenris and his crossbreed mate.

So Chris made the decision based on his mate's reaction. He tugged at the reins and his horse easily turned, heading back toward where their last camp had been.

Ezra blinked, then followed, riding up next to him. "Chris?"

"We have no reason to be here, other than taking time off from Four Corners. And I think the cabin sounds good." He shot his companion a smile.

The other man was silent, looking over his shoulder, then at the sky. There was no sign of life.

"You don't think it offends them?"

Larabee shrugged. "We haven't been invited. They can't take offense that we choose to heed their solitary nature."

Ezra mulled that over, silent, eyes hidden in the shadows cast by his black hat.

"You want to turn around?" Chris asked after a while.

"I… it's just… this weird feeling. Kind of surreal."

"Like we're being watched. Evaluated."

Ezra looked slightly startled at his alpha's words, then nodded.

"I don't think we failed whatever evaluation this was," Chris went on. "I met Kojay only once and he is an impressive man, powerful, very much a leader. Vin knows his son, Chanu, and he told me a few things after we met with them. I don't think they are taking offense at our retreat. We're not here because of them or for them. We have no missing person to hunt down or a criminal to catch. We're on duty as much as we're getting away from it."

Ezra chuckled softly, then stopped the horse near the stream they had been following for a while. Chris did the same, waiting, eyes alert and fully on his mate.

Not far from them was a deer.

It was looking at them.

"Okay, this is creepy now," Ezra muttered.

Larabee looked at the deer. Like out of nowhere a man appeared next to it, dressed in the simple, habitual garb of the Men of the Land. He was of medium height, the dark hair falling between his shoulder blades, loosely bound by softened leather strips.

And Chris knew him.

"Chanu," he said, bowing his head respectfully. "Son of Kojay."

"Chris Larabee," the other replied. "Alpha of the Larabee pack. I greet you." He looked at Ezra. "Ezra Standish, alpha's mate."

Ezra tensed a little. News seemed to travel without being spread.

"Just passing through," the alpha in question told him calmly, eyes sliding briefly over to Ezra, who looked tight-lipped and like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

"You and your pack are always welcome to visit us."

"And we thank you for it."

Chanu inclined his head. "The protectors of the Territory need no invitation. Like us, you are this land, and the land will always be you. Remember that." Then turned and walked away, the deer following gracefully.

"Huh," Ezra muttered.

"Told ya."

"I might be the land, as he so eloquently put it, but I'm still not staying. I like your cabin. It's an extremely well-furnished and well-stocked place," Ezra added. "I'd prefer the comforts of your home to the welcoming wilderness of the land."

Chris laughed. "Sure. You know Kojay would give us a place to sleep tonight should we choose to visit the tribe's current settlement."

"Do you want to?" Ezra asked.

Larabee gave him the raised eyebrows. The crossbreed chuckled.

They both let their horses walk at a sedate pace, the opposite direction Chanu and the deer had gone, and Chris found himself relaxing with each passing mile.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

The cabin wasn't just Chri's home away from the town, it was also a place with a hot shower and a soft bed. Ezra made use of that shower, glad Chris wasn't one of those few settler out here who believed solar panels, electricity and running water were too modern and ruined the Territory experience.

Then again, there had only ever been one couple who had lived like in the Stone Age, pumping their water from a well or carrying it from the river, fire lit under big kettles, bathing once a week, and lighting candles when it got too dark inside. They had lasted one summer only. Winter had done them in, had nearly frozen them, and Nathan had had his hands full trying to save the man's hands and feet from frostbite.

Enjoying the hot water for as long as he could, Ezra finally toweled off and stepped into the bedroom. He dressed lightly, then relocated to the living room with its small kitchen area where Chris was busy pouring coffee into two well-used mugs.

The long-distance radio was on and Ezra's practiced eye scanned over the read-outs, seeing that it was functioning perfectly for once. That meant few to no atmospheric disruptions and quiet ley-lines.

"Everything quiet in town?"

Chris shrugged. "Same old. Had a few drunks trying to horse race, which Josiah and Nathan put an end to. The coach broke down halfway on its way to town. We got some unhappy travelers, including a new science team. Had to lug their gear to town on foot."

"Oh dear lord, not again," Ezra muttered.

"I thought you liked chatting with them."

"Conversation is one thing. Having them poke around every corner of our town is disconcerting."

Chris held out a mug with black coffee. "It's a burden we bear."

They relocated to the couch and the alpha slid against his mate. Ezra automatically adjusted his position.

"But Vin is very well capable of handling it," he murmured. "He told me to take a time out and not come back before next week. Just following my second's advice."

"Vin is a very wise man."

Chris' eyes were bright, reflecting the same smile that was on his lips "Good. We're on the same page."

Ezra kissed the dark blond head. "This time we are. Who could argue against such sound advice?"

Chris pulled him into a real kiss. "You like arguing."

"When I have a chance of winning."

"Want to argue that point?"

The green eyes flared with a challenge accepted. "You, dear sir, are in for quite a loss."

Chris smirked. "I count you naked in bed always as a win, Mr. Standish."

"Are those the odds?"

"I wouldn't gamble on anything less. And I know you like high stakes."

Ezra's grin was downright shit-eating.

xXxXxX

Neither man tried to argue who had won or lost as they lay next to each other, naked, spent, Chris feeling both euphorically high and exhausted in one. Ezra was dozing off already, and he barely muttered a protest when Chris moved to pull the blanket over them.

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Ezra sat on his horse, eyes on the town before him. A cool, fresh wind tugged at his clothes, ruffled his horse's mane. The clouds were sparse, though, and the sun shone brightly on this fine spring day. He and Chris had stopped on the small hill not far from Four Corners, the path sloping gently down toward the town's main road. It was a good viewing point, showing the small settlement with its bustle and life.

His town.

His place.

It was an unusual feeling for him to have. Ezra Standish had never felt at home anywhere as long as he could remember. He had never really been welcome anywhere either. As a child he had been pushed off at so-called relatives. As a teen he had been dragged along by Maude, never staying in one place for too long. As an adult he had made sure never to be too long in one place to be pinned down by the local law enforcement.

He was law enforcement now.

He was employed, had a regular income, and he was a Territory regulator.

Part of the Larabee pack.

Chris Larabee's mate. The alpha's mate.

Ezra smiled all of a sudden, the feeling at those thoughts bright and warm, centered deep in his chest. It was something he had never experienced before and it was a feeling he would protect with his last breath.

He had been outed to his pack as a crossbreed and they hadn't really batted an eye at it. He was one of them, not an outsider, existing at the fringe of the tight-knit group. They couldn't care less about his shifting abilities, the limitless number of forms he could take. He had weathered the storm, both literally and figuratively, especially when his mother had breezed into his life again.

He would have to thank Josiah for all of that. The man had attacked a fellow pack member and regulator under the heavy influence of complete intoxication, but all things considered and scars aside, it had helped Ezra come to terms with some things and accept a lot of others. And it had pushed Chris into saying the words they both had always known existed between them, acknowledging that this, between them, was more than just a way to pass a boring day or two.

Chris pulled up next to him, the hazel eyes on him knowing and filled with emotions they rarely ever voiced.

"You think Josiah would appreciate a donation to his ongoing project?" Ezra asked casually, smiling.

"He just might. You'll get an earful about fate and stuff."

"His and mine," Ezra agreed, inclining his head.

Josiah hadn't touched a drop of alcohol since, sticking to whatever virgin mixtures Inez's bartender was trying out. Ezra had tried some and found them refreshing and not too sweet.

"Ready?" Chris asked.

"Always."

Because this was his. Chris was his. This was where he belonged, part of Four Corners Territory, part of the Larabee pack, and part of Chris.


End file.
